Các nhà kinh tế hiện có khuynh hướng nhất trí rằng tự do hóa tài chính
phải diễn ra theo trật tự đi đôi với việc cải cách những khu vực khác. Quan
trọng hơn nữa là những cơ sở hạ tầng mềm thiết yếu như các định chế điều
tiết phải được thiết lập khi cho phép các động lực của thị trường vận hành
trong hệ thống tài chính.
(Saigon Times Daily ngày 5-4-2004)
79. Credit Rating
Credit ratings are familiar to investors in developed financial markets but
in Vietnam they are a relatively new phenomenon.
Broadly speaking, a credit rating is an assessment of the ability of an
entity (for instance a corporation or a country) to fulfill its liabilities on
time and in full. Credit ratings are arrived at by evaluating all internal and
external factors that affect an organization's or nation's ability to meet its
liabilities. Practitioners of this work include several prestigious
international credit rating agencies.
In 2002, Vietnam's Ministry of Finance officially invited three major
credit rating agencies (Fitch, Standard & Poor's and Moody's) to assess
Vietnam's sovereign debt credibility. As a result, Standard & Poor's (S&P)
for the first time included Vietnam in its ratings list with a rating of BB. In
previous years, Moody's had given Vietnam a B1 rating. (In general, a
grade of A is considered to be most credit worthy, with c being the least
credit worthy.)
Credit ratings play a crucial role in financial markets by helping
investors to analyze and assess the financial situations of entities in which
they have an interest. It is particularly meaningful to small investors who
invest in securities but lack the time or the necessary skills to evaluate the
issuers of the securities they purchase.
