Australia's gold-plated AAA credit rating has been confirmed once again with Fitch Ratings overnight reaffirming its AAA assessment of Australia (with a stable outlook).
Australia is now one of only eight members of The 9As Club – countries with the highly sought after AAA rating with a stable outlook from all three global ratings agencies – S&P, Fitch Ratings and Moody's.
Before Labor was elected, Australia had never received the exclusive AAA rating – the pinnacle of credit ratings - from all three global ratings agencies.
In its release overnight, Fitch Ratings noted:
Australia has remained one of the strongest performing economies in the 'AAA' universe since the global financial crisis began.
And
Australia has built up the capacity to absorb shocks due to a combination of low public debt, a free floating exchange rate and liberal trade and labour markets, which allows the authorities to run strong countercyclical policies during downturns and the economy to adjust.
Fitch Ratings also stated it reached its determination assuming:
That Australia's high level of political stability and governance is maintained, which supports the country's attractive business climate.
Despite the ridiculous scare campaigns we've seen on the economy this week from the Opposition, being an elite member of The 9As Club shows the resilience of Australia's economy.
No Liberal government has ever achieved this coveted trifecta from all three global ratings agencies – in fact, the IMF confirmed the Howard Government presided over a period of wasteful 'fiscal profligacy'.
In contrast, Labor has got the big economic calls right to avoid recession during the global financial crisis and Australia's economy has grown by more than 13 per cent since we came to office.
During this time, more than 900,000 jobs been added in Australia while tens of millions have been lost around the world.
Our responsible fiscal consolidation has given the RBA more room to run lower rates by helping to keep inflation contained, something that has been achieved alongside low unemployment and solid economic growth.
Lower rates mean a family with a $300,000 mortgage is paying around $100 a week less in repayments than they were when the Liberals left office.
Getting the big economic calls right over the last five years and continuing our responsible budget management has put Australia in a strong position to grasp the opportunities of the future.