LatinNews Daily - 20 December 2023

*The international credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has raised its long-term global scale rating for Brazil to ‘BB’, up from ‘BB-’, with a stable outlook. Brazil’s short-term global scale rating was maintained at ‘B’. In a statement, S&P highlighted the importance of the tax reform which was approved by congress on 15 December, saying that “while it will be implemented gradually, the reform is a significant overhaul of the tax system and will likely translate into productivity gains over the long term”. S&P added that the reform “reflects an increasingly pragmatic institutional framework that helps to anchor macroeconomic stability” and that “we expect Brazilian institutions to continue to slowly address the economic inefficiencies that slow the country’s growth, as well as the country’s rigid budgetary structure, which contributes to large fiscal deficits and a high debt burden”.