Geopolitical risk seen for Asia-Pac

CHINA's competing territorial claims has increased the risk for the Asia-Pacific while the region's credit-fuelled growth will face higher financing costs when the US tapers its monetary stimulus.

Rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) said this in its report on the global sovereign credit outlook for 2014.

And China's slower growth will be another whammy for the region, added S&P in its global sovereign outlook released on Tuesday.

Although the Asia-Pacific saw a mild erosion in its outlook balance to -13 per cent from zero at the beginning of the year, it still has the most stable outlook of any region globally (82 per cent versus a global average of 68 per cent), it noted.

A sovereign rating refers to a long-term foreign currency sove…