Fitch Upgrades Iceland Rating To First Step Of Investment Grade (Recovery from Banking Crisis) .

Wall Street Journal ^ | 02/17/2012 | Mia Lamar

[SeekAndFind]

DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

Fitch Ratings lifted its rating on Iceland to investment grade, citing the nation's progress in stabilizing its economy and pushing ahead with structural reforms.

The upgrade puts Iceland's long-term foreign currency issuer default rating at triple-B-minus, placing it on the first rung of investment-grade territory. The outlook is stable.

As one of the first countries to take a hit from the global financial crisis, the country is now showing a "promising" economic recovery, said Paul Rawkins, a senior director at the ratings firm.

He added that Iceland has successfully completed a program with the International Monetary Fund and gained renewed access to international capital markets.

Fitch believes that Iceland's gross general government debt may have peaked at around 100% of GDP in 2011, while net debt is significantly lower at around 65% of GDP.

Excluding the possibility for further shocks, the firm said Iceland should see a reduction in its public debt to GDP ratio, assuming its economic recovery continues to progress and fiscal targets are adhered to by the government.

Fellow ratings firm Standard & Poor's Ratings Services last year raised its outlook on Iceland to stable from negative, pointing to the country's improved economic fundamentals and growth expectations.

[SeekAndFind]

Maybe we ought to find out what Iceland did right and emulate it.

While Greece and Europe continue sinking ever deeper into the colonial quicksand of Pax Goldmania, Iceland, which blew up, pushed its banks into bankruptcy, and arrested its corrupt bankers, is well on its way to being the world's only normal country.

I am reading headlines such as these now:

* ICELAND RATINGS RAISED TO INVESTMENT GRADE BY FITCH

* FITCH UPGRADES ICELAND TO 'BBB-'; STABLE OUTLOOK

* FITCH DOES NOT EXPECT ICELAND TO SLIP BACK INTO RECESSION

* FITCH SAYS ICELAND GOVERNMENT DEBT PEAKED AT 100% OF GDP IN '11

Too bad the Goldman colony of Greece (and soon everyone else - thank you first lien "bailout" debt) will not see headlines such as these written about it any time in the next century

[Jonty30]

Iceland told the banks to drop dead, that’s what it did.

They government of Iceland didn’t socialize the bank losses and came out stronger for it.

[Kartographer]

This is what needs to be done here. Will it hurt? Hell yes it will. Will we get through it HELL YES we will. But there are a lot of people in banking, investing and in the watchdog agencies that need to go to jail and learn the pleasures of domestic bliss under the gentle tutelage of former crack dealing street thugs.

[dfwgator]

I agree 100%, it was better to take the hit then, than to only delay the inevitable, and make the inevitable even worse.

[SueRae]

God bless them. They really got the shaft from us..horrible. I am thrilled that they are making the comeback. When are WE going to learn?

[C19fan]

Major help when you still can control your own currency, Icelandic Krona.

[Oatka]

Iceland told the banks to drop dead, that’s what it did.

I remember reading at the time that the Icelandic government told their citizens they'd have to take a 25% hit on incomes for the next four-five years in order to save the banks (in as many words). Luckily they had to put it to the voters, who told them to Drop Dead. Much hand-wringing over the disaster that was sure to follow. It didn't, and they are on their way back.

Gonna be longer for the rest of us.

[dfwgator]

Iceland told the banks to drop dead, that’s what it did.

Instead, the US Government told our grandkids to drop dead.

[SeekAndFind]

Iceland is the story the EU Socialists do not want anyone to hear.

Iceland´s turnaround since the collapse of the Icelandic banking sector in 2008, is buried in the news by the lamestream press everywhere so EU taxpayers don’t get any funny ideas about an alternative model how to deal with the odious debts pushed on the sovereigns.

The Icelandic banks made big bets on the fiat socialist Ponzi schemes and they lost, and now they have to pay. The people of Iceland won and the economy RECOVERS.

One plus for Iceland — UNLIKE IRELAND, THEY DON’T USE THE EURO. Their Krona is still the Sovereign Currency.

In October 2008, the effects of the 2007/08 global financial crisis brought about a collapse of the Icelandic banking sector. The value of the Icelandic króna plummeted, and on 7 October 2008 the Icelandic Central Bank attempted to peg it at 131 against the euro.

This peg was abandoned the next day. The króna later fell to 340 against the euro before trade in the currency was suspended (by comparison, the rate at the start of 2008 was about 90 krónur to the euro). After a period of tentative, very low-volume international trading in the króna, activity had been expected to pick up again throughout November 2008, albeit still with low liquidity, as Iceland secured an International Monetary Fund loan.

[Roccus]

This is what needs to be done here.

It's what SHOULD have been done here. Now, it may be too late.