Standard & Poor’s reaffirms Dominican Republic’s credit rating and highlights its public debt management

Santo Domingo.- Standard & Poor’s (S&P Global) credit rating agency, reaffirmed this Thursday, the Dominican Republic’s credit rating at BB maintaining its stable outlook. The agency highlighted, among other factors, the strengthening of government institutions, which has allowed the country to maintain high economic growth rates and improve its fiscal planning and debt management.

The agency, having upgraded the Dominican Government’s credit rating from “BB-” to “BB” in December 2022 - a significant milestone for the country in attaining its highest credit rating to date, emphasizes the continued role of macroeconomic stability as the key pillar driving these accomplishments.

S&P’s report values the reduction in inflation rates, as a result of the Central Bank’s tight monetary policy throughout 2023 and expects that the country's economic growth will quickly return to its long-term levels. In addition, the report points to the great performance seen in the tourism sector, which contributes to the expansion of the gross domestic product (GDP) and the reduction of the current account deficit.

The agency notes that one aspect that could lead to an improvement in the credit rating is the Government’s capacity to approve and implement reforms that allow it to improve fiscal and debt planning measures, leading to lower fiscal deficits.

With regards to this Minister of Finance, Jochi Vicente, expressed that “Despite having faced very challenging external and internal events, we have managed to both enhance and implement reforms within the government, which have resulted in advances in the country's credit evaluation, translating into more and better opportunities.”

The vice Minister of Public Credit, María José Martínez, highlighted that the improvements obtained in the credit rating during the current administration, not only enable the Dominican government to access capital markets at more favorable terms but also strengthen international investor confidence, making the country increasingly more attractive for foreign investment.