It is now not only the Government of Hungary that recognizes the good performance of the Hungarian economy in recent years but also credit rating agencies, Minister of State for Financial Affairs Gábor Gion said on public news broadcaster M1, commenting on the latest upgrades by Standard and Poor's and Fitch Ratings.

The fiscal deficit has been under 3 percent of GDP, and the government debt-to-GDP ratio has also been declining for years, he noted. 2018 was an especially good year with GDP growth of 4.8 percent, and the Government is working to maintain this high growth rate, he pointed out. Provided the economy continues to perform this well and the debt ratio is reduced further, upcoming ratings are also set to improve, the Minister of State said.

On 15 February Standard and Poor's raised Hungary’s rating for long- and short-dated, forint- and foreign currency denominated debt from BBB minus/A-3 to BBB/A-2. Fitch Ratings raised the rating of Hungary’s long-dated forint- and foreign currency denominated debt from BBB minus to BBB.

(Ministry of Finance)