S&P Global Market Intelligence presents a weekly overview of ratings actions on Middle Eastern and African financial institutions and economies. Ratings actions are listed by announcement date in reverse chronological order.

Jan. 23

* Moody's upgraded African Export-Import Bank's issuer rating to Baa1 from Baa2, with a stable outlook, after the bank recently secured a five-year insurance policy for callable capital on behalf of the bank's class A and B shareholders. At the same, the agency upgraded Afreximbank's long-term deposit rating to Baa1 and its short-term bank deposit rating at P-2.

Jan. 20

* CI Ratings affirmed the AA- long-term foreign- and local-currency ratings and A1+ short-term foreign- and local- currency ratings of the United Arab Emirates.

* Moody's assigned Tanzania-based National Microfinance Bank Plc long-term local- and foreign-currency deposit ratings of B1/B2, with stable outlooks. Other first-time ratings assigned to the lender include Not Prime short-term local- and foreign-currency deposit ratings; Ba3(cr) /Not Prime(cr) long- and short-term counterparty risk assessments; and "b1" baseline and adjusted baseline credit assessments.

Jan. 19

* A.M. Best has affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of B++ (Good) and the long-term issuer credit rating (long-term ICR) of "bbb" of Union Insurance Co. P.S.C. (Union) (United Arab Emirates). The outlook on the FSR remains stable, whilst the outlook on the long-term ICR remains positive.

Jan. 18

* S&P Global Ratings corrected Development Bank of Southern Africa's senior unsecured local-currency debt rating by lowering it to BBB from BBB+. The agency did not downgrade the rating as part of its Dec. 5, 2016, action on the bank due to an error.

* S&P lowered Mozambique's long- and short-term foreign-currency sovereign credit ratings to SD/D from CC/C after the country failed to make an interest payment on a $727 million bond. The agency said the country's ratings are likely to be raised from SD after the completion of any restructuring, or when S&P expects no further resolution to occur. The agency also affirmed Mozambique's long-term local-currency rating at B-/B, and the outlook on the rating was revised to stable from negative.

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