LONDON (Standard&Poor's) May 14, 2002--Standard&Poor's today said it affirmed all its ratings on the Kingdom of Spain, including the double-'A'-plus/'A-1'-plus issuer credit ratings. The affirmation reflects Spain's sustained progress with fiscal consolidation and continued real convergence with EU average income levels. The outlook is stable. "The improvement of the general government performance, from a 3.2% deficit in 1997 to a balanced budget in 2001, was due not only to declining interest payments and strong revenues, but also to tight expenditure control," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Beatriz Merino. "The political commitment to fiscal discipline remains strong, as demonstrated by the government's target of maintaining fiscal balance in 2002 and achieving small surpluses from 2004," Ms.
