Fitch affirms Saudi Arabia's credit rating at 'A+'; outlook Stable

Fitch Ratings affirmed Saudi Arabia's long-term foreign-currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at 'A+' with Stable outlook.

The rating reflects the Kingdom's strong fiscal and external balance sheets, with government debt/GDP and sovereign net foreign assets (SNFA) considerably stronger than both the 'A' and 'AA' medians, and significant fiscal buffers in the form of deposits and other public sector assets.

In its report, Fitch expected the Kingdom’s sovereign net foreign assets (SNFA) to remain a key credit strength at (35.3%) of GDP in 2027, which is larger than relative to ‘A’ median (3.1% of GDP), supported by prudent fiscal management and stable external positions.

The fiscal reforms that increase the budget's resilience to oil price volatility and a continuation of economic reform that supports strong growth of the non-oil economy, could have a positive impact on the rating, Fitch added.