On Feb. 28, 2006, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services raised its long-term sovereign credit ratings on the Federative Republic of Brazil. The long-term foreign currency rating was raised to 'BB' from 'BB-', and the long-term local currency rating was raised 'BB+' from 'BB'. At the same time, Standard&Poor's raised its national scale credit rating on Brazil to 'brAA+' from 'brAA'. In addition, Standard&Poor's affirmed its 'B' short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings on the republic. The outlook is stable. The upgrades reflect the continued and marked improvement in Brazil's external debt indicators as well as prospects for an important decline in the vulnerability of the government's debt burden to exchange-rate and interest-rate fluctuations. Net
