This is not the appropriate time to go for a rating. Originally the Central Bank was hoping to initiate the process of obtaining a sovereign rating by the end of 1997. A sovereign rating rates the credit risk of a country. The rating serves as a ready guide to investors to arrive at a interest without having to do in depth investigations for themselves. It also serves as a benchmark to base the rates at which money will be lent to private issuers.
High ratings enable borrowers to obtain funds at cheaper rates.
Another such issue which was to follow at around this has also been delayed. Top rating agencies such as Moody's Investors Services and Standard and Poor Corp, suddenly downgraded ratings for most East Asian nations during the past few months when their financial markets collapsed and some corporates were unable to pay back foreign debt. The rating agencies came under fire from investors for not being able to anticipate the weaknesses in these country early enough. Rating agencies on their part have said that unlike in developed countries accurate information was not available on a timely to basis to base their decisions. But when the Asian economies were on the growth track leaders such as Malaysian Finance Minister Anwar Ibrahim have heavily criticized Western rating agencies of giving poor ratings to East Asian countries when their external accounts were better than some of the developed countries.