UPDATE Fitch downgraded Romania's country rating

The financial evaluation company Fitch downgraded Romania’s country rating for the long term foreign currency credits from BBB to BB+ and for the long term national currency credits from BBB+ to BBB-, a press release of the institution shows.

According to the document, the decision reflects the fears of the agency regarding the local macro-economic policies and the ability of the government to avoid a severe financial and economic crisis. Moreover, Fitch downgraded the rating for short term foreign currency credits from F3 to B and decreased Romania’s ceiling from A minus to BBB.

Romania’s rating was BBB which was two steps over the junk category and the country’s rating was negative. Critics against Romania’s economic policies were rejected by local authorities who declared that Romania does not need help from IMF.

UPDATE Romanian Economy minister Varujan Vosganian declared that the financial evaluation company does not take into account the positive evolution of the Romanian economy, namely the annual growth rate of 9.1% of the GDP in 2008 and its 6% estimation in 2009. Also, Vosganian added that the governmental debt was maintained at a very low rate to 10.8% of the GDP in 2008.

Romania’s international reserve is sufficient, estimated at 27.9 billion euro in October and its external debt is lower that the one registered by other EU countries. Vosganian underlined that there is a lack of coherence at the political decision making level in assuming restrictive public policies that ould reduce economic crises risks.