Greece's sovereign credit rating has climbed on two fronts with Scope Ratings upgrading the country to BBB+ with a stable outlook and Moody's shifting its outlook to positive from stable while affirming its Baa3 rating — the third such positive shift from a major agency in roughly a month.
Scope cited Greece's rapid debt reduction, expecting public debt to fall to about 136% of GDP in 2026 from 146.1% in 2025, supported by early debt repayments, sustained primary surpluses and stronger tax administration.
The agency projects debt could decline further to around 110% of GDP by 2031, noting Greece posted a 1.7% overall budget surplus and a 4.9% primary surplus in 2025 — among the strongest in the EU.
Scope also pointed to average real growth of 2.1% from 2023 to 2025, more than double the EU average, driven by domestic demand, tourism, rising investment and continued absorption of EU Recovery Fund money, of which Greece had received €24.6 billion — nearly 70% of its total allocation — by June 2026.
Moody's said the positive outlook reflects mounting evidence that Greece's structural and institutional reforms are paying off through greater economic and fiscal resilience than previously expected, reinforcing the government's capacity to keep reducing debt through early repayments.
Finance Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis called the twin upgrades "a vote of confidence" arriving as international bond markets face broader turbulence, saying they confirm Greece's strong fiscal performance, above-average growth and reform progress, and validate the government's strategy of using fiscal gains to accelerate debt reduction through early repayments.
Deputy Finance Minister Nikos Papathanasis called the announcements further international recognition of the government's growth-oriented economic policy.
The upgrades follow similar positive outlook revisions from Japan's R&I on Aug. 17 and Canada's DBRS on Sept. 4, and come alongside the Athens Stock Exchange's recent reclassification as a developed market.