Fitch affirms Ecuador's CCC+ rating

Fairly high per-capita income, current account surpluses balanced against policy uncertainties, financing constraints, weak growth prospects, says agency

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Fitch Ratings said Tuesday that it affirmed Ecuador's long-term foreign currency issuer default rating at CCC+.

The rating agency said Ecuador's ratings reflect the country's "fairly" high per-capita income, current account surpluses, and multilateral financing that support external liquidity and mitigate macro stability risks.

These factors, however, are balanced by a "poor debt-repayment" record, continued political and policy uncertainties, constraints on government financing, and weak economic growth prospects.

Fitch said it expects the South American country's fiscal deficit to fall to 3.4% of GDP this year, from 5.3% last year.

Ecuador is estimated to show a GDP growth of 0.2% this year, down from 2.4% in 2023, it added.

The agency noted that it typically does not assign outlooks to sovereigns with a rating of 'CCC+' or below.

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