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Friday, 26.04.2024, 13:35
PM: high credit rating for Lithuania will determine lower costs for public debt servicing
Credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has upgraded Lithuania's long term borrowing rating from BBB to A-, thus returning it to one of the highest rating levels in Lithuania's sovereign credit history. One of the key motives for the decision is the determination and possibilities of Lithuania to adopt the euro already in 2015.
"For a common person it means that we will be able to plan lower costs for servicing the public debt," said Butkevicius at an interview to LRT radio on Tuesday.
S&P also noticed that Lithuania's external and fiscal performances have exceeded agency's 2013 expectations, and continued strong and sustainable economic growth averaging 4 percent over 2014-2017 is expected.
"We believe that Lithuania fulfils all quantitative euro-accession criteria and will be invited to join the euro zone in 2015," S&P said in a statement.
Euro adoption will improve Lithuania's monetary flexibility as the central bank "has no meaningful flexibility to steer monetary conditions" under its current currency board policy, S&P said.
The last time S&P assigned A- long term rating to Lithuania in 2008.