Downgrade fears averted as Fitch holds SA's credit rating steady at BBB

Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene must have breathed a sigh of relief late on Friday, after ratings agency Fitch decided not to downgrade South Africa's sovereign credit rating, instead affirming it at BBB. This dispelled concerns over a possible downgrade that would have placed the country's foreign debt rating at the lowest investment grade level - a notch above the "junk" status, shunned by investors and in line with rival agency Standard & Poor's.