It’s indeed a matter of great satisfaction that global rating agency Fitch has upgraded county’s foreign credit rating to ‘B-’ from ‘CCC+’, citing increased confidence in the country’s progress on narrowing its budget deficit.
What is equally important to note is the rating agency’s advice to the government that though ongoing global trade tensions could create external pressure, its low dependence on exports and market financing should mitigate risks.
No doubt, the upgrade certainly indicates that the country would make concerted efforts aimed at implementing structural reforms. That is why perhaps the rating agency appears quite optimistic about the availability of the needed efforts aimed at supporting the IMF programme.
Needless to say, the rating upgrade is a major achievement, prompting prime minister Shehbaz Sharif to explain it as “a reflection of economic progress and the global community’s confidence in the national economy”.
In my view, however, the rating upgrade by Fitch must not lead to cause complacency among our policymakers as the state of economy is still far from satisfactory, to say the least. In other words, implementing reforms is a task which is far from finished.
Rubina Ashraf, (Karachi)
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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