South African government: Welcoming Moody's rating outlook upgrade to stable

　　China News Service, Johannesburg, April 3 (Reporter Wang Xi) In response to the international authoritative rating agency Moody's recently raised South Africa's rating outlook to the "stable" level, the South African government responded on the 3rd that it welcomed the above adjustment by Moody's.

　　Previously, Moody's downgraded South Africa's credit rating to "junk" on March 30, 2020, and its investment rating outlook was downgraded to "negative" due to factors such as the COVID-19 epidemic, continuous large-scale power outages, and security concerns. , which means that the country's government is more likely to be unable to pay its debts.

　　In response to this situation, the South African government has successively launched a number of measures in the following two years, including the presidential employment stimulus plan, power system reform, and support for the public health sector to fight the epidemic to ensure the country's economic recovery process.

In addition, South Africa has survived four consecutive peaks of the COVID-19 epidemic, which has also provided a solid foundation for the country's economic recovery and development.

　　On the 1st of this month, Moody's announced to adjust the outlook for South Africa's debt from "negative" to "stable" and maintain South Africa's long-term domestic and foreign currency rating at "Ba2".

In this regard, Moody's pointed out in the report that the key driving factor behind the decision to change South Africa's credit rating was that the South African government insisted on its debt consolidation plan and benefited from the rise in commodity prices, which made the country's financial situation significantly improved. improve.

The report also pointed out that the change in South Africa's debt outlook is mainly due to the fact that the South African government's debt burden may gradually stabilize in the medium term, and the debt is expected to stabilize at around 80% of GDP.

　　Earlier, South African President Ramaphosa also said in his State of the Union address that as the new crown pneumonia epidemic improves, South Africa is accelerating the pace of economic recovery in order to restore the public's sense of trust and pride in the country.

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