Brazil’s credit rating has just been raised to investment grade by Fitch Ratings, the risk rating agency. This is the second time in less than a month that Brazil’s credit rating has been upgraded – following Standard & Poor´s (S&P) rating announcement on April 30. The announcement made Thursday, May 29, reaffirms Brazilian economy is a safe destination for foreign investment.

The key benefit from the assignment of an investment grade is the ability to attract investors from the industrialized countries, which according to the rules set by their corporate by-laws, are only allowed to invest in low risk assets. Some of them even require investment grade assigned by two different agencies, which Brazil now has now achieved.

"The assignment of the investment grade reflects the dramatic improvement in Brazil's external and public sector balance sheet that has greatly reduced Brazil's vulnerability to external and exchange rate shocks and entrenched macroeconomic stability and enhanced medium-term growth prospects”, according to Fitch Ratings’ official press release.

Also according to Fitch Ratings, “Brazil has emerged as a net public external creditor for the first time, thanks to the government's skillful liability management and a significant accumulation of international reserves, that currently stand at nearly US$ 200 billion.”

The Fitch rating comprises 23 categories, ranging from AAA (the highest) to D (the lowest). Brazil was raised from BB+ to BBB-.