KSA Business: Fitch ratings boost for Saudi Arabia; gets positive outlook – Gulf Digital News

KSA Business: Fitch ratings boost for Saudi Arabia; gets positive outlook – Gulf Digital News

Leading international credit rating agency Fitch has updated its credit report for Saudi Arabia affirming its 'A' rating for the kingdom and revising the stable outlook from its July 2021 rating to positive, reported SPA.

According to the Agency, the outlook revision reflects the kingdom's improvements in the sovereign balance sheet given higher oil revenue driven by increase in oil prices, commitment to fiscal consolidation and implementation of various plans to diversify the economy, it stated.

The agency also forecasts the government debt to GDP to remain below 30% until 2025, which is approximately half the median level of comparative countries with similar credit ratings.

Additionally, Saudi Arabia will maintain its large financial reserves during the coming period, including buffers in the Central Bank, which exceed 10% of GDP.

In its report, the agency expected the continuation of positive growth in the Saudi economy and budget surpluses for the years 2022 and 2023 for the first time since 2013 (equivalent to 6.7% and 3.5% of GDP, respectively). This is a result of the recent oil price recovery, and the agencies revised forecasts for the current year.

Despite the rise in oil prices, the agency also expected that spending control will broadly persist given the uncertainty