Coface downgraded the financial ratings of 22 countrie

In the year 2008 shortfalls in payment increased dramatically and will continue to do so. In total, shortfalls in payment between companies increased by 47% worldwide.

 According to Coface, the repercussions
of the financial crisis are most felt by those countries in which the
financial bubble burst first and in which there was strong economic
growth in recent years: this not only relates to the USA and Spain,
but also to Great Britain and Ireland. In these countries as well as
in Germany economic growth had recently been less strong.

Coface forecasts 7 percent growth for
China in 2009. In its survey of the payment behavior of Chinese
companies, Coface emphasized the impact of excessive competition on
the private sector’s declining profit margins. The current slowdown
in Chinese growth will result in an increased rate of payment
defaults on the part of Chinese companies, Coface said.
The
foreign debt of Russian companies has risen 140 percent since 2005,
and further payment defaults are in store, Coface said. Russia’s
rating has been placed on the negative watch list in the latest
survey.