MOODY’S OUTLOOK FOR ASIAN FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

RATINGS agency Moody's Investors Service has given a mixed outlook to the Asian financial industry. Jerry Chien, managing director for Moody's financial institutions group in Asia Pacific said: “The outlook for insurance in Asia Pacific includes increased business opportunities but there may also be greater risk as many of the new markets are still in their infancy." He added that the ratings outlook for Asia's banks remained stable, while the industry outlook was increasingly negative. "The stable ratings reflect our confidence that the region's banks can deliver performance consistent with their current ratings, although in the short term, banks dependent on cross-border capital markets and money markets will remain under the highest stress," he said.