Standard & Poor's Affirms Botswana's Credit Rating

RAPAPORT... Standard & Poor's Ratings Services affirmed Botswana's ''A-'' long-term and ''A-2'' short-term sovereign credit ratings and affirmed a ''stable'' outlook, adding that the diamond-producing nation has a reasonably well-managed minerals-based economy and a record of political stability.

Botswana's ratings are constrained by its narrow economic base, primarily diamonds. Standard & Poor's expects diamond production to remain steady this year and the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) to improve about 2.6 percent per year through 2016.

As long as diamond exports continue to grow, the ratings service anticipates small government surpluses for each of the fiscal years through 2016.