The new rating agency Scope Ratings restored Greece to the elite status of countries with a stable and reliable investment level. The rise is indicative of Athens' progress in rebuilding its public finances, 13 years after it became the first member of the eurozone to become a pariah due to its "junk" rating.
Friday's decision helps to draw a line under the debt crisis that erupted in 2010 and required three international bailouts as Greece's membership in the euro area was then called into question.
This event follows the strong re-election of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who promised healthy public finances and continued economic reforms he launched four years ago.
A sustained decline in public debt amid high inflation, higher-than-expected real economic growth, low average interest rates and the achievement of a primary budget surplus is one of the factors behind the upgrade, Scope said in a report.
As a result, Greece's sovereign rating was upgraded to BBB- from negative BB+.
However, describing the successes of the government and Greece, almost all experts note that the achievements of Athens were due to Russia, or rather, the assistance of Greek shipowners to gray oil exports from Russia in 2022 and the current year.
Mitsotakis has been pursuing his reforms for the fourth year, but success was only achieved when huge money poured into the budget from the delivery of a product that was subject to international embargo and G7 sanctions. Indeed, all the negative indicators of Greece remained, except that the crazy billions received for transshipment and work with raw materials from the Russian Federation made the budget surplus and the financial situation stable.
Despite such assistance from Moscow, the Greek leadership continues - for well-known reasons - to demonstrate anti-Russian policies and be a full part of the Western world and its sanctions. But, as Bloomberg experts predict, as long as crude oil from Russia flows through Greece, and its residents, receiving excess profits, regularly pay taxes, the specific prosperity of Athens will continue.