November 4, 2003	Tuesday	Ramazan 8, 1424

ISLAMABAD, Nov 3: Credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s (S&P) has decided to upgrade Pakistan’s credit rating due to broad improvements in the economy.

“After Moody’s Investor Services, S&P also finds Pakistan’s long-term foreign currency and debt outlook stable and would shortly be upgrading the country’s credit rating,” said Finance Secretary Naveed Ahsan.

Talking to Dawn he said that senior officials of Standard and Poor’s met him last week in Islamabad and termed most of Pakistan’s economic indicators “positive”. “They told me that the country’s exchange rate is stable while exports and revenues are picking up and these are good signs for the economy,” the finance secretary said.

In reply to a question, he said that after Moody’s, S&P was also now expected to enhance Pakistan’s credit rating from B3 to B2 after formal approval by its board within this year.

He said the S&P officials had appreciated the role of the Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) for effectively monitoring and regulating public and private sector companies with a view to ensuring transparency and fair play.

“S&P has hailed the tabling of Fiscal Responsibility Law in parliament,” Mr Naveed said, adding that positive reports of the two international credit rating agencies would help attract the much needed foreign investment in the country.

He said government’s efforts to ensure good governance in the federal and provincial departments had been appreciated by the S&P officials.

The finance secretary said that both the rating agencies believed that Pakistan’s economy was now predicable, economic policies were transparent, confidence of the private sector had been restored to some major extent and expatriates were bringing their capital back into the country.

He pointed out that S&P was of the view that Pakistan’s external debt and foreign exchange liabilities, which reached at unsustainable level by 1998-99, had started moving towards sustainability.

He said that he had informed the S&P officials that over the next five years, six per cent plus growth rate would be achieved against the current level of 4.5 per cent. Investment as percentage of GDP was projected to rise from the current level of 15-16 per cent to 18 per cent, while savings were expected to rise from the current level of 15 per cent to about 17 per cent.

“Generally, the S&P officials were of the view that Pakistan’s economy is showing signs of incredible recovery, which is good for its people,” the finance secretary said.