A strong and clear commitment from members of the eurozone to keep Greece in the common-currency bloc helped lead Standard & Poor's to raise its rating on Greece to B-minus from selective default, the ratings firm said on Tuesday.
Even with the country still facing challenges, S&P placed a stable outlook on the new B-minus rating. That buoys hope that the worst of Greece's problems could be in the past.
"It is a very important decision, but there is no room for complacency", said Greek Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras. "It is a decision which creates a climate of optimism, but we know that the road is still long and uphill."
Greece received a long-awaited €34.3 billion ($45.4 billion) round of aid Monday as part of the latest bailout program. The aid comes after Greece agreed to buy back some of its outstanding private-sector debt at deep discounts to face value to reduce its debt level.
"From a real credit point of view, I don't see how you can upgrade", Greece, said Lawrence McDonald, senior director of credit sales and trading at Newedge in New York. "Debt is still not sustainable."
Moody's Investors Service, which rates Greece at single-C on its scale, on Friday warned that losses on public-sector Greek debt is eventually unavoidable.
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