The confirmation of the country’s credit rating at BB+, in the current conditions of uncertainty in the international environment, is proof that the Government of Serbia is responsibly facing the given challenges, says Standard & Poor’s press release.
Although the scale of the economic crisis is large, as well as the negative effects resulting from it, Serbia has managed to preserve macroeconomic and financial stability and maintain strong prospects for long-term growth – SP states.
The agency adds that Serbia’s credit rating could be improved if the growth of the Serbian economy accelerates beyond expectations, and the negative consequences of geopolitical uncertainty are kept under control.
Standard & Poor’s also estimates that the slowdown of the Serbian economy in 2023 will only be short-lived, and after that, growth of three percent is expected in 2024, 2025 and 2026 which will be stimulated by the improvement of global economic conditions, domestic investments and consumption.
The Serbian banking sector continued to be successful and the banks remained profitable and liquid, the agency states. The share of non-performing loans (NPL) reached a historic low of 3 percent, which is a significant improvement compared to 22 percent in 2015.
The high influx of foreign direct investments and other financial inflows made it possible to increase foreign exchange reserves to more than 21 billion euros at the end of February 2023, a record amount so far.
Predictions are that the Serbian economy will continue to attract foreign direct investments in the coming period, which will primarily be aimed at financing large infrastructure projects.
(Seebiz.eu, 11.04.2023)
https://www.seebiz.eu/ekonomija/s-p-potvrdio-kreditni-rejting-srbije-na-nivou-bb/290342
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