Fitch Maintains Rwanda Credit Ratings At 'B+' With Stable Outlook

(RTTNews) - Fitch Ratings on Friday affirmed Rwanda's credit ratings at 'B+', given the strong growth, supported by the government's ability to rationalize expenditure and implement policies with the potential to boost domestic revenues.

Rwanda's strong growth and low inflation are key rating strengths, the rating agency said, adding that the stable outlook reflects the assessment that upside and downside risks to the rating are currently balanced.

Fitch expects inflation to pickup in 2016 due to rising food and fuel prices.

The rating agency sees economic growth of 6.3 percent in 2016, which is higher than the median forecast of 4.5 percent for 'B' rated sovereigns. Fitch expects the Rwandan economy to continue to grow by around 7 percent year-on-year through 2017.

For 2016, the budget deficit is expected to be 4.5 percent of GDP, slightly lower than the figure programmed in the budget. The deficit is expected to shrink further in fiscal 2017, it added.