Understanding National Scale Ratings
What Are National Scale Ratings?
National Scale Ratings (NSRs) produced by S&P National Ratings businesses provide an opinion of an obligor's creditworthiness or ability to meet specific financial obligations, relative to other issuers and issuance in a given country. These ratings use separate processes and standalone national scale methodologies, leveraging local knowledge and analytical frameworks to deliver a tailored approach in the countries where they are offered.
Currently, S&P National Ratings businesses are active in select countries across Latin America. Through country‑specific analytical methodologies, the S&P National Ratings businesses produce independent opinions and analytical insights that contribute to a broader assessment of credit risk.
What Changed With the Introduction of S&P National Ratings?
Issued under the new S&P National Ratings brand, NSR methodologies support the introduction of market-specific ratings for issuers and issuances across selected countries. Separate processes and stand-alone methodologies are informed by local knowledge and market experience to reflect relevant aspects of domestic markets.
The mission of the S&P National Ratings businesses of S&P Global Ratings is to identify and capture local credit factors in an effort to help meet local capital financing needs. This approach will be followed in other markets across the globe to expand the use of NSRs.
The NSR criteria have been developed by local teams to reflect the unique characteristics of the domestic capital markets for countries in scope, while supporting analytical consistency and continuity. The methodologies incorporate increased granularity in assessing risks and adjustments to parameters to reflect local practices. The changes are intended to support more granular consideration of the risks and characteristics of domestic issuers.
Key Takeaways
NSRs produced by S&P National Ratings businesses are designed specifically for the local capital markets of individual countries. The criteria for these credit ratings reflect the unique characteristics of each country’s domestic market, these NSRs cannot be compared across different countries.
S&P National Ratings activities are independent and separate businesses from S&P Global Ratings’ Global Scale Ratings. The S&P National Ratings businesses emphasize specialization and dedicated focus on their respective markets. Local analytical teams develop and calibrate rating methodologies to reflect local market factors.
Global Scale Ratings and Sovereign Ratings remain active in countries where S&P National Ratings businesses are active. Different entities may require different types of credit ratings depending on their needs. Global Scale Ratings are designed for certain debt issuers seeking to diversify beyond their local debt market and can facilitate credit risk comparability for international market participants. S&P Global Ratings will continue to offer Global Scale Ratings and provide Sovereign Ratings for Mexico, Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. These ratings will be based on our Global Scale Ratings criteria and methodologies and the expanded use of our NSRs will not result in any changes to these ratings.
Where Are the S&P National Ratings Businesses Active?
S&P National Ratings businesses are active in:
Does S&P Global Ratings Offer Global Scale Ratings in the Same Countries As S&P National Ratings?
S&P National Ratings: Tailored Solutions for the Unique National Market
Discover S&P National Ratings, which reinforces our commitment to the national capital markets in Latin America. Through in-depth analysis and tailored criteria, we provide investors, issuers, and market participants with insights essential to driving growth and transparency.
