Rating agency Standard & Poor's decided to keep Russia's foreign currency sovereign credit rating at speculative "BB+" level with the negative outlook.
As for the short-term foreign currency sovereign credit rating, it was confirmed at "B" level, while long-term and short-term national currency ratings were confirmed at "BBB-/A-3" level.
According to S&P, Russia’s low national debt has positive effect on the ratings. Analysts at the agency think that in the short-term, Russia will be facing weak prospects of public income and GDP growth. This will impede the Russian economy's competitiveness.
Earlier, S&P updated the outlook for Russia’s economy decline in 2015 from 2.6% to 3.6%. The outlook for the ratings can be revised to stable if Russia’s financial stability and growth prospects improve. S&P may downgrade the ratings if foreign countries tighten economic sanctions against Russia as a result of geopolitical developments.
