The moon rises over the Acropolis in Athens: Greek bonds gradually lose their “junk” status.
(Photo: Petros Giannakouris/AP)
The German rating agency Scope has given Greece an “investment grade” rating. The agency upgraded the southern European country’s credit rating to BBB-. The outlook is stable, Scope announced on Friday evening. Previously, the rating was BB+ and thus in the so-called junk area with a high risk of default. After the Japanese agency Rating and Investment Information (R&I) was the first to advance worldwide this week, expectations are growing that the three major rating agencies Moody’s, S&P and Fitch could follow suit and again classify Greece as investment-worthy. DBRS Morningstar plans to review its rating in early September. But Greece is on the threshold of the investment sector. Greece was downgraded to junk status in 2010 because of the debt crisis. The euro countries and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had lent Greece a total of more than 260 billion euros. In return, the most heavily indebted country in the euro zone committed itself to reforms and tough austerity measures. Greece emerged from the crisis in 2018, but remained the only country in the euro zone with “junk” status. The national debt and the reforms in the banking sector have developed favorably, Scope justified the upgrade. However, there are still challenges such as structural economic weaknesses including high unemployment.