Country risk
The risk of loss from what happens to the issuer's country rather than to the business itself: rules, taxes, restrictions, settlement.
How to read the number
It strikes every security of a country simultaneously, so spreading money across issuers within one market offers no protection from it.
When the metric lies
It is conflated with the sovereign rating, but a rating judges the state's ability to pay, while country risk also covers the case where payment is possible and not permitted.
Also known as: jurisdiction risk