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Germany gets triple-A from S&P

July 12, 2013

International ratings agency Standard & Poors believes Germany still deserves the top-notch triple-A credit rating. Europe’s largest economy is able to withstand any shocks from the eurozone crisis, it has found.

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Image: picture-alliance/dpa

The German economy had demonstrated its ability to absorb large economic and financial shocks, therefore, the country's sovereign debt was given an AAA rating, Standard & Poors agency announced Friday.

The decision reflects S&P's view of the German economy to be modern, highly diversified and competitive, as well as the government's track record of prudent fiscal policies and expenditure discipline, according to a statement from the international ratings agency.

Alongside Finland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, Germany is one of the few eurozone countries enjoying a so-called triple-A rating, which is the best possible category of creditworthiness. AAA countries pay less interest on their sovereign debt than lower-rated nations.

UK loses AAA credit rating

S&P also upheld its stable outlook for Germany, meaning the country's debt was unlikely to be downgraded any time soon.

Germany has escaped the deep recession a number of eurozone countries have remained locked in since the 2008 financial crisis. Although growth briefly stalled at the end of last year and was just 0.1 percent in the first quarter of this one, Europe's biggest economy is seen accelerating economic expansion in 2013.

S&P announced that it expected the German economy to grow by 0.4 percent this year and at a steady, albeit very modest, rate of 1 percent over the medium term until 2016.

uhe/mkg (AFP, dpa)