The government has commenced banking sector reforms to improve the commercial viability of domestic banks. These reforms should decrease dollarization in the banking system, which should improve monetary policy effectiveness over time. We expect the authorities will continue institutional and economic reforms, which should ultimately strengthen governance and expand the economy's productive capacity. We are affirming our 'BB-/B' ratings on Uzbekistan and keeping the outlook at stable. On Dec. 13, 2019, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'BB-' long-term and 'B' short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings on Uzbekistan. The outlook is stable. The stable outlook reflects our expectation that, over the next year, Uzbekistan's fiscal and external positions will remain strong but decline slightly, because of current account
