Republic of Austria 'AA+/A-1+' Ratings Affirmed; Outlook Stable

OVERVIEW Austria boasts a resilient, diversified, and prosperous economy, but we expect real economic growth per capita will only accelerate moderately over our 2016-2019 forecast period, after nearly four years of stagnation. We expect Austria will continue its fiscal consolidation after a hiatus in 2016, with net general government debt decreasing slowly from a peak in 2015. Austria's policy-making environment has been stable and consensual but reform momentum has slowed and the decline of the traditional political order may lead to further polarization and reduce the effectiveness, predictability, and stability of policymaking. We are therefore affirming our 'AA+/A-1+' ratings on Austria. The stable outlook reflects our expectation that Austria's economic, fiscal, and external credit metrics will remain close to current

...OVERVIEW Austria boasts a resilient, diversified, and prosperous economy, but we expect + real economic growth per capita will only accelerate moderately over our 2016- 2019 forecast period, after nearly four years of stagnation. We expect Austria will continue its fiscal consolidation after a hiatus in 2016, + with net general government debt decreasing slowly from a peak in 2015. Austria's policy-making environment has been stable and consensual but reform + momentum has slowed and the decline of the traditional political order may lead to further polarization and reduce the effectiveness, predictability, and stability of policymaking. We are therefore affirming our '##+/A-1+' ratings on Austria. + The stable outlook reflects our expectation that Austria's economic, fiscal, and + external credit metrics will remain close to current levels over our 2016-2019 forecast period. RATING ACTION On Sept. 16, 2016, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its '##+/A-1+' long- and short-term foreign and local...

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