We can be satisfied that the credit rating of Montenegro has not worsened considering the events and instabilities we had during the previous two years, the director of the Institute for Strategic Studies and Projections (ISSP), Dr. Jadranka Kaluđerović, announced. The credit rating agency Standard & Poor‘s recently confirmed the credit rating of Montenegro while retaining the ‘B/B’ rating. Kaluđerović believes that limiting public spending, i.e. responsible public spending and strictly limiting borrowing will be key to the future ratings that the credit rating agency will assign to the state.
– Credit’s rating is at the level of the one in neighboring countries and reflects the state and prospects of an economy whose economy is not diversified, is highly import-oriented and is very sensitive to external shocks and which is additionally highly indebted in the fiscal part. That’s why those areas were rated the worst, while institutions and the economy in general were rated somewhat better – Kaluđerović said.
She added that we received this rating because Standard and Poor‘s expects that the economic growth of Montenegro will continue due to the growth of tourism.
– Also, expectations are that fiscal deficits and balance of payments risks will continue to be sustainable and that external financing channels will remain open with all remaining financing needs, which will be met by domestic banks or international financial institutions – said Kaluđerović.
– Expanding the economic base and strengthening the resistance of the Montenegrin economy to external shocks would also contribute to the improvement of the rating. In the scenario in which the rating would increase, the net national debt as a share of GDP would have to fall below 60 percent of GDP and should be supported by the primary budget surplus – Kaluđerović said, adding that earlier and faster progress in joining the EU could use and contribute to a more positive institutional assessment of credit rating agencies.
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