S&P lowers Bahamas

Standard & Poor's said it lowered its sovereign credit rating on the Commonwealth of the Bahamas to BBB/A-3 from BBB+/A-2. S&P said it also lowered the transfer and convertibility assessment to BBB+ from A-. The outlook is stable.

The downgrade reflects the heavier weight that S&P's recently revised sovereign rating criteria places on economic factors, which are relative credit weaknesses for the Bahamas, the agency said. The Bahamian economy is vulnerable to the country's dependence on one sector, tourism, and one geographic market, the United States.

S&P said the stable outlook balances the risks associated with the Bahamas' higher levels of government and external debt against the agency's expectation for low deficits and a generally stable external financing profile.

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