Fitch, one of the big three international ratings agencies, on 5 May downgraded Egypt from ‘B+’ to ‘B‘, adding a negative watch to boot. This rating, a full five notches below investment grade, implies that Egyptian debt is “highly speculative.”

Moody’s already rates Egypt a notch lower still at B3, six below investment grade, but nevertheless put Egypt on review for a further downgrade on 9 May. (CONTINUED - 243 WORDS)