Fitch Affirms Slovakia's Rating at 'A-' with Stable Outlook

Bratislava, 15 November (TASR) - The international agency Fitch Ratings on Friday affirmed an unchanged rating for Slovakia at 'A-' with a stable outlook, the Finance Ministry reported on the same day, adding that this move comes shortly after another rating agency, Standard & Poor's, affirmed its 'A+' rating on Slovakia with a negative outlook three weeks earlier. According to the ministry, these results indicate the stability of Slovakia's public finances and confidence of international investors. "Once again, the affirmation from Fitch Ratings is a positive signal which comes at a time when the European economy is facing several serious challenges - from stagnation among our largest trading partners to trade wars and the negative impact of tariffs imposed by the U.S., as well as overall geopolitical tensions," stated the ministry, adding that Slovakia is one of the most open economies and is highly sensitive to developments in Europe, especially its key trading partners such as Germany and Austria. According to Fitch Ratings, Slovakia's GDP is projected to grow by 0.7 percent in 2025, which is close to the Finance Ministry's estimate of 0.8 percent, and by 1.1 percent in 2026. "Growth will remain underpinned by household consumption, robust investment linked to Recovery and Resilience Facility funds, and gradually improving external demand. We expect growth to pick up to 1.5 percent in 2027, supported by new auto industry investments," stated Fitch Ratings. The agency also took into account the government's efforts to gradually improve public finances, expecting the deficit to fall to 5.1 percent of GDP in 2025, with further reductions to be seen in the subsequent years due to continued consolidation effort. "In Slovakia, opposition politicians are trying to spread only negative information and lies on purpose to create the impression that Slovakia is a black hole. That's not true, and the affirmations from rating agencies clearly refute these lies," said Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenicky (Smer-SD). He reiterated that Slovakia's economy is recovering from the legacy of the former government which he claimed left the public finances in the poorest shape across the entire EU. Moody's, the third major rating agency, is expected to publish its rating on Slovakia by the end of the year. jrg