Toyota , long a credit rating stalwart according to Fitch Ratings, has been downgraded from AAA to AA with a negative outlook in response to the global economic slump and the surging value of the Japanese yen. Toyota, certainly not immune to the rough ride being provided by the global economy, has seen shares drop up to 5 percent this morning as a result of the downgrading.
The negative outlook added to the AA rating means that Fitch Ratings suggests Toyota could be downgraded again within a year.
“ Toyota is suffering severely from the ongoing turmoil in the global automotive sector,” Tatsuya Mizuno, a Fitch director, told the Associated Press.
“The negative developments in the industry are so substantial and fundamental that even the strongest player – Toyota – can no longer support an ‘AAA’ rating,” he said.
Toyota retains top credit ratings from Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s, however. And even the AA rating shows a very high quality of credit – a grading that Detroit automakers can only dream of for the time being.
