Govt pitches rating upgrade to S&P on strong GDP forecast

The Indian government on Monday made a pitch to international ratings agency Standard & Poor's for a higher sovereign rating. Currently, S&P has a 'BBB' rating on India with a stable outlook. In September last year, S&P had upgraded the outlook to stable from negative, citing confidence in the newly elected NDA government to push through key reforms. In a presentation on economic outlook, the government highlighted positives like expectation of 8 percent gross domestic product (GDP) in FY16, growth in corporate and indirect tax and better economic position in comparison to other emerging markets. Sources, however said, S&P is concerned over certain issues like falling exports, rising external debt and political logjam in the economy. During its mid-year review of the Asia-pacific region lats month, S&P had retained its stable outlook on India, but warned that it "may lower the rating if the government’s structural reform agenda stalls such that economic growth does not accelerate, or fiscal and debt ratios fail to improve."The government assured S&P that it is in the process of formulating a strategy to get the GST and Land bills approved in Parliament.