Government notes Fitch’s decision to affirm South Africa’s long-term foreign and local currency debt [SOUND]

# Government has noted Fitch’s decision to affirm South Africa’s long-term foreign and local currency debt ratings at BB- and maintain the stable outlook. Country Risk Senior Analyst, Benni Mphaphuli, says according to Fitch, South Africa’s credit rating is constrained by several factors, including low real GDP growth, high poverty and inequality levels, a high and rising government debt-to-GDP ratio, as well as a rigid fiscal structure that hampers budget deficit reduction: