Agreement on setting up BRICS credit rating agency

BRICS leaders on Sunday agreed to set up an independent rating agency based on market-oriented principles, saying it would further strengthen global governance architecture.

"We welcome experts exploring the possibility of setting up an independent BRICS Rating Agency based on market-oriented principles, in order to further strengthen the global governance architecture," said the joint declaration issued after the 8th BRICS Summit here.

"In order to further bridge the gap in the global financial architecture, we agreed to fast track the setting up of a BRICS Rating Agency," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a statement at the conclusion of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) leaders summit.

The BRICS Business Council, which met here on Saturday during the just concluded 8th annual summit, had in their annual report recommended that member countries continue the dialogue for a new rating agency for emerging economies.

"Among key recommendations of various working groups of Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa Business Council is the continued dialogue on BRICS rating agency," Onkar Kanwar, Chairman, BRICS Business Council - India Chapter, said during the meet.

Earlier, BRICS New Development Bank President K.V. Kamath had expressed concerns over methodologies employed by American rating agencies saying that these are constraining growth in emerging nations.

He had said that despite having deep capital buffers, the ratings of multilateral banks like the NDB are affected by the parent countries' sovereign ratings.

"We need not constrain ourselves from our ability to do business. If this is the norm, I fear growth in the developing world will also be impacted," Kamath had said

The BRICS group has earlier expressed concerns about the working of the rating market, currently dominated by US-based agencies like Fitch, Moody's and S&P.

--IANS

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