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Operational stresses in the general acute health care sector are beginning to seep into some performance metrics for U.S. not-for-profit children's hospitals.

Fitch's 'AA-' median rating for stand-alone children's hospitals is secure thanks to their robust liquidity, strong philanthropic support, solid operating margins and specialized clinical

We are seeing growing momentum for sugar taxes in the Americas, with a number of countries considering following Mexico's lead which introduced a tax on sugary drinks in 2014. We profile the impact of Mexico's sugar tax in the years since, and assess the latest policy developments and overall likelihood of a sugar tax in other major markets in the

2018 will be a comeback year for the Hong Kong IPO arena, which will see the exchange broaden its issuer base and diversity in the capital market. After a disaster year for the local Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEx) in 2017 (which saw the bourse lose its crown and slip to as low as third in the global IPO destination rankings), the exchange has

Recent admissions of data falsification by some Chinese local and regional governments (LRGs) highlight governance weaknesses within the sector and add to uncertainty over reported fiscal data. We will continue to monitor developments and take rating action, as appropriate, if further examples come to light. That said, the central authorities'

The legal backdrop for U.S. state and local pensions has played a key role in reforms adopted by some states in 2018, although pensions in general still face an uphill climb to improve their funding levels.

Worries over the long-term sustainability of pension obligations and the rising budgetary burden of annual contributions remain front and

Forty-six states begin a new fiscal year on July 1, and the vast majority will do so with a Stable rating outlook.

The majority of Fitch's U.S. state rating outlooks are Stable and expected to remain so. The two states with Negative Rating Outlooks (Illinois and Pennsylvania) and the one state with a Positive Rating Outlook (Hawaii) reflect

The collapse of UK construction company Carillion highlights the importance of contract risk management and of maintaining margins for companies in the European engineering and construction (E&C) sector, Fitch Ratings says. The sector is largely sub-investment grade, but investment-grade ratings are possible where both the business and balance

Government KYC regulation and stricter data laws will impact mobile wallet usage, which is already showing signs of slowing. While government digital-ID efforts have done little to help and a continuous public preference for cash and distrust towards online payment systems present downsides to further growth, usage of the Unified Payments Interface

Canada's Bank Recapitalization (Bail-in) Regime increases the protection for covered bondholders against a hypothetical issuer default, according to Fitch Ratings. It will lead to larger buffer against a potential issuer downgrade for Fitch-rated covered bond programs of federally Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIB) in Canada. Under an

The Iranian economy will see growth accelerate over the quarters ahead, as European, Russian and Chinese commitment to improving relations with Tehran facilitate an uptick in investment. US primary sanctions, limited credit availability, and various structural impediments will nevertheless prevent a boom in the economy, particularly as hydrocarbon