Fitch upgrades Korea

Fitch Ratings upgraded South Korea’s sovereign credit rating by one notch on Thursday.

This is is the first time in 15 years that Korea has regained the “AA-” rating, which is on par with Saudi Arabia and a step higher than China and Japan.

The global rating firm cited its continued economic and financial stability as well as the government’s fiscal discipline.

Fitch raised Korea’s government bond rating to “AA-” from “A+”, roughly 10 months after changing the outlook to “positive” from “stable.”

It said that risks posed by North Korea are a relevant factor in South Korea’s rating but ”remain remote.”

Thursday’s upgrade follows Moody’s Investor Service’s one-notch upgrade of South Korea’s rating to “Aa3” on Aug. 27, the highest rating the agency has ever assigned to the country.

It remains to be seen whether rival agency Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services will follow suit by upgrading the country’s rating or outlook. The agency has kept Korea at A with a stable outlook since July 2005.

(From news reports)