Haaretz bashes Netanyahu over Moody's 'Israel' credit rating downgrade
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The newspaper says confidence in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is "nearing zero".
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Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, speaks with Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich during the weekly cabinet meeting at the Security Ministry in "Tel Aviv", Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024. (Pool via AP)
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz blamed Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the credit rating downgrade by US ratings agency Moody's for "Israel" over the war in Gaza from A1 to A2, for the first time since 1998, the year the rating began.
In its editorial titled "Netanyahu Lowers Israel's Credit Rating, but Takes No Responsibility," Haaretz pointed to a "black day" on Friday suffered by the Israeli economy over the weekend, where "all the grim assessments came true."
The newspaper noted that the rating downgrade is "not temporary", adding that Moody's believes the effects of the war will last for a long period and that there is no possibility of a rating adjustment upward in the near future.
Haaretz accused the Israeli leadership of failing to get the economy back on track, stressing that confidence in Netanyahu and his Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is "nearing zero".
It further noted that Moody's does not believe that Netanyahu and Smotrich "will fix what they have damaged," suggesting that the agency issued such a serious report and announced this dramatic decision for this specific reason.
Smotrich claimed Moody's decision was a "political manifesto that is based on a geopolitical, pessimistic, and unreasonable worldview."
"75-76 economists in New York are handing downgrades on whether we agree to a ceasefire or not, [and whether] we are willing to set up a Palestinian state or not, and decided to downgrade our rating because we have, so far, not done so," he added.
Touching on Netanyahu's downplaying of the agency's step, the newspaper mentioned that the Israeli premier claims the credit rating downgrade has nothing to do with the poor budget, deficit, or his failed personal management but a result of the war.
It sarcastically added, "He [Netanyahu] was just a passer-by that found himself in this position."
"The Israeli economy is strong. The rating downgrade is not connected to the economy, it is entirely due to the fact that we are in a war," Netanyahu said on Saturday, adding, "The rating will go back up the moment we win the war — and we will win the war."
In the same context, Haaretz explained that the most specific element for credit rating agencies is the government's budget, noting that Moody's is concerned that the downward trend in the debt-to-GDP ratio has reversed and started to rise.
The newspaper attributed this increase to the arbitrary budget presented by Netanyahu and Smotrich for 2024, which creates a large and dangerous deficit due to the lack of necessary cuts.
It also warned that the new rating is costly, where interest rates will rise, meaning that public debt funding, investments, and services for settlers will become more expensive.
According to the Israeli newspaper, the interest paid by commercial companies will increase, reducing activity and diminishing growth. Additionally, an interest rate increase will affect every household, as mortgage rates will rise, and there is a possibility of inflation, a decline in the shekel exchange rate, and a decrease in the standard of living.
