Soldiers of the Republican Guard stand on their armed pick-up in a street in Libreville, Gabon August 30, 2023 REUTERS/Scott Ngokila Acquire Licensing RightsSept 5 (Reuters) - Credit ratings agency Fitch said on Tuesday it has placed Gabon on "rating watch negative" (RWN), citing high political uncertainty in the Central African nation following a military coup last month. Fitch placed Gabon's 'B-' Long-Term Foreign-Currency and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings on RWN in an unscheduled review. It said the coup may have weakened Gabon's financial prospects by hurting the operational capacity of institutions responsible for its treasury and debt management, and also affecting the country's access to regional debt markets. "We assume Gabon will rely more on the regional market for financing at higher interest costs as the coup heightens the market's nervousness," Fitch said. The credit ratings agency added that a resumption of the country's IMF programme was also now unlikely.

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Persons: Scott Ngokila, Fitch, Ali Bongo, Bongo, Pushkala, Shailesh Organizations: Republican Guard, REUTERS, Central, IMF, Thomson Locations: Libreville, Gabon, Central, West, Bengaluru