Improvements in Uzbekistan’s standing with global credit agencies have allowed the country to secure external financing on significantly better terms. Akmaljon Ganiev, Deputy Head of Department at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, shared these insights during a recent press briefing, Gazeta.uz reports.
The upward shift in sovereign ratings by the "Big Three" agencies has translated into tangible lower borrowing costs for the republic:
- Rate Reduction: Interest rates on newly attracted foreign resources have dropped by 1–1.5 percentage points.
- Budgetary Relief: This adjustment is projected to reduce external debt servicing costs by $250–300 million per year.
Uzbekistan has achieved a positive trajectory across all major international assessments:
- S&P Global Ratings: Raised the credit rating from "BB-" to "BB" for the first time since 2018.
- Fitch Ratings: Upgraded the rating to "BB", marking the first improvement in seven years.
- Moody’s: Maintained the "Ba3" rating but upgraded the outlook from "stable" to "positive".
While borrowing conditions have improved, the overall debt volume continues to rise. As of October 1, Uzbekistan's total external debt reached $75.4 billion, an increase of $11.3 billion since the start of the year. Notably, the corporate debt of private and state-owned enterprises now exceeds the volume of direct sovereign debt.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
February 6, 2026