Credit rating agencies should be free to rate but the markets should also be free from not having to follow them.

Sir, every comment in Richard Beales and Saskia Scholtes´ extensive and detailed “Critical focus turns on rating agencies”, August 16, seems to underline the idea that credit rating agencies can do a better job, while the most important fact we need to realize is that to correctly rate credits is such an impossible thing to do that we should never adjudicate special powers to any agency to influence the market. The first thing we need to do is to start dismantling the system of using credit rating agencies. Of course they are free to rate, but the markets should also be free not to follow them.