S&P Maalot downgrades port of Haifa's rating to AA-

The rating agency cited sharp decrease in liquidity. The Israeli unit of S&P also upgraded its outlook for the port to "stable”
 
Rating agency Standard & Poor's Maalot Lt. Israel's leading provider of independent credit ratings has downgraded of Haifa port company to AA-, from AA+, citing sharp decrease in liquidity. The Israeli unit of S&P also upgraded its outlook for the port to "stable”.
 
In a statement issued earlier this week by the rating provider, it noted that rating improvement depends on the successful completion of the first stage of the privatization process. On the other hand, any delay in the privatization process may worsen the situation.
 
The rating provider also noted that the downgrade was mainly due to sharp fall in profitability compared to previous years and to other international port companies which despite the global financial crisis managed to show healthy profits.