SINGAPORE: On one level, there’s nothing so surprising about Moody's Investors Service's decision to downgrade China’s sovereign debt one notch to A1. Since March last year, when the rating company and its rival S&P Global Ratings cut their outlook on the People's Republic’s credit standing, an eventual demotion has been the most likely outcome.
Still, it mustn't have been an easy decision, considering the tongue-lashing they got from the Chinese finance minister at last year's Group of 20 meeting over the “bias” in their assessment.