The Vice-President of the Government highlighted with satisfaction the importance of the financial rating awarded the Fitch agency, which rated the region for the first time, placing in the external investment grade. According to him, "this is "excellent news" for the Azorean economy and for public finances.
 
"The rating awarded to the Azores, which is only one level below the national rating, is very positive as far as it allows the Region to access international markets in general, which will entail a significant reduction of financing costs," said Sérgio Ávila.
 
"The Fitch agency's rating also means that the Region, from the investors' standpoint, becomes more attractive to investment and, consequently, the access to financing will be easier," added the government official. 
 
Fitch assessed the profile of the Azores as an investment, which focused on revenue, expenses and liabilities, considering the Region's debt profile as diversified, conservative and with a favourable amortisation schedule.
 
"The assessment carried out by Fitch encompassed all public companies, including those outside the fiscal consolidation perimeter, as well as the already foreseen future liabilities, such as Public-Private Partnerships," said the government official.
 
According to Sérgio Ávila, Fitch's first financial rating, which places the Azores in the external investment grade, "further strengthens the confidence and international certification that confirms the stability of regional public finances."
 
According to the Vice-President, the Region's rating "is another evidence of the sustainability of the regional public finances," following the successive improvements in the Azores rating awarded by Moody's; the last one occurred in October.
 
"The situation of regional public accounts has been validated consecutively and the improvement of the Region's rating has been improving over the last few years, reflecting our consolidation efforts," noted Sérgio Ávila.
 
"The improvement of Region's rating to external investment grade, which I hope will be awarded by other rating agencies, entails substantial changes in the Region's financing profile," stated Sérgio Ávila. With this rating, the Region "becomes attractive to international financial investors and will have widespread access to international financial markets with less costs, thus channelling resources from national banks to the regional economy."
 
Moreover, this rating entails a reduction of the financial costs and significant savings for public entities and private companies.
 
According to Sérgio Ávila, the Regional Government "will start issuing bonds in international markets and will also begin to anticipate refinancing operations that will ensure significant savings, as the country has been doing successfully in recent times."