Rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) is more negative about the Irish airline Ryanair because of the malaise in the aviation sector caused by the coronacrisis. S&P reduces the creditworthiness outlook to negative, which means there may be a downgrading of the credit rating for Ryanair.
The rating itself is still on BBB. S&P believes that Ryanair’s finances will continue to be under pressure for a long time due to the crisis in the aviation sector due to the virus outbreak. Because of the pandemic measures, many aircraft had to stay on the ground for months and Ryanair, like other airlines, suffered heavy losses. The company is working in various ways to reduce costs, including job losses.
Branchegenoot Moody’s came with a write-down for the British IAG, parent group of British Airways and Iberia, among others. The rating goes from Ba1 to Ba2, with a negative outlook. Moody’s points to the weak recovery of passenger demand and the high exposure of IAG to international air routes and business trips that have been hit hard by the crisis.