Fitch Ratings has reaffirmed Serbia’s BB plus credit rating with a stable outlook for further improvement, despite the crisis caused by the coronavirus, the finance ministry said. The Agency estimated that the well-balanced budget for 2020, the fiscal discipline of the Government of Serbia and the amount of deposits, provide ample fiscal space for post-crisis response.
According to this rating agency, GDP growth is expected to be 5.8 percent in 2021, up 2.2 percentage points from the previous forecast, thanks to expected investment growth, recovery in private consumption, and improved market conditions labor and demand recovery.
The Fitch agency specifically noted that investment growth surpassed expectations in the fourth quarter of 2019, and that the trend continued into 2020, the ministry reported. Serbia’s credit rating is more resilient to the shock caused by the virus corona due to the low impact of tourism on the economy, increased foreign exchange reserves, positive effects of lower energy prices and moderate participation of non-residents in public debt.
It is also good that inflation remained low and stable at 1.9 percent in February, the statement added, which is a good indicator of the growth of foreign reserves, which have increased by more than two billion euros in the last year. The statement added that the significant and constant decline in the share of government debt in gross domestic product was assessed positively, from 71.2 at the end of 2015 to 52.9 percent at the end of 2019.
The agency’s report notes that significant progress has been made in improving tax administration and managing public finances, Kurir reports.
