Moody’s Gives Hamas a Win with First-ever Israeli Credit Downgrade

The Moody’s credit rating agency delivered a victory to Hamas and its Iranian patron on Friday by downgrading Israel’s credit rating for the first time ever, from A1 to A2, due to the war Hamas started.

Globes reported:

Moody’s has cut Israel’s credit rating from A1 to A2, due to the effects of the war. The international ratings agency has also lowered Israel’s outlook from stable to negative and sees a possible further downgrade in the future. In effect, Moody’s has taken the most drastic rating action possible, surprising even the most pessimistic market forecasts. This is the first time that Moody’s has ever cut Israel’s credit rating.

Moody’s analysts say, “The main driver for the downgrade of Israel’s rating to A2 is Moody’s assessment that the ongoing military conflict with Hamas, its aftermath and wider consequences materially raise political risk for Israel as well as weaken its executive and legislative institutions and its fiscal strength, for the foreseeable future.”

In response, the Jerusalem Post reported, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that “the Israeli economy is strong. The rating downgrade is not connected to the economy; it is entirely due to the fact that we are in a war.”