S&P Global Ratings affirmed Lithuania’s credit rating
On Friday evening, the international credit rating agency S&P Global Ratings affirmed the long-term credit rating ‘A’ with a stable outlook to Lithuania.
“The high credit rating maintained by Lithuania is strongly influenced by our fiscal policy. Responsible planning and management of public revenue and expenditure contributes to the promotion of economic growth, high credit rating, which determines the favourable cost of borrowing. Therefore, despite growing defence needs, it is important to maintain fiscal discipline not only in the short term, but also in the future", Minister of Finance Kristupas Vaitiekūnas states.
Analysts from Standard & Poor’s note in their report that Lithuania’s economy has shown remarkable resilience and growth has been particularly rapid, with a GDP per capita increase of more than 40% compared to 2021. Experts project that Lithuania's economy will continue to grow over the next two to three years supported by strong domestic demand.
Rapidly rising defence spending is significantly increasing public debt, although, according to Standard & Poor’s analysts, it is still at a medium level compared to countries with similar ratings, and the external balance remains solid.
Analysts note that persistent geopolitical uncertainty and increased regional security risk factors may continue to influence Lithuania's credit rating in the medium term, but at the same time do not expect the Russian-Ukrainian war to expand into NATO territory, including Lithuania.
The last time that Standard & Poor’s analysts reviewed Lithuania’s rating was in May 2024, setting an ‘A’ (stable outlook) and maintaining an A-1 short-term rating, and last December they only published a report on Lithuania assessing the country’s economic outlook. The latest report of the agency can be found here.
The rating given to Lithuania at the end of October, ‘A’ with a stable outlook, was also affirmed by the international credit rating agency Fitch Ratings, which last upgraded Lithuania’s credit ratings in January 2020, when the long-term debt rating was upgraded from ‘A-’ to ‘A’.
The rating ‘A (high)’ with a stable outlook issued to Lithuania at the beginning of October was affirmed by the international credit rating agency DBRS Morningstar. DBRS Morningstar last changed Lithuania’s long-term credit rating in November 2021 by upgrading it from ‘A’ to ‘A (high)’ with a stable rating outlook. The latest report of the agency can be found here.
On the same evening, another agency, Moody’s Investment Service, announced that it had completed the periodic review of Lithuania’s credit rating and provided an assessment of Lithuania’s economic outlook. Moody’s last upgrade of Lithuania’s credit ratings took place in February 2021, when the A3 (positive outlook) long-term credit rating issued in 2015 was upgraded to A2 (stable outlook).
More information about Lithuania’s credit ratings is available here.
Additional information:
A credit rating is an indicator that provides investors/creditors with consolidated information on the level of the borrower’s ability to meet its financial obligations. A high credit rating indicates a lower risk of default of the borrower/issuer and, accordingly, lower borrowing costs.
S&P Global Ratings is part of a group of three influential credit rating agencies, including Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings. They use certain classification and symbols to express credit ratings and to determine the credit value for borrowing countries and companies by using standardised credit ratings.
Last updated: 01-12-2025
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