OREANDA-NEWS. Ecuador’s credit rating was increased one notch by Fitch Ratings on the outlook for faster economic growth amid increasing financial stability. Fitch raised the long-term foreign debt rating to B from B- with stable outlook. The upgrade reflects the country’s continued healthy growth performance, which is growing by more than 3% since 3Q10. It also highlights the monetary and financial stability in Ecuador. The country is also benefiting from the availability of financing from China and multilateral lenders.

Ecuador obtained a USD 1.2 billion, four-year loan from China in August and expects an additional USD 400 million in credit in both 2014 and 2015, according to the Finance Ministry. Public expenditures, forecast by the finance ministry to increase 7.8% this year, are likely to continue driving growth. The finance ministry expects the economy to expand 4.05% this year.

The SABB HSBC Saudi Arabia PMI of October signalled a further improvement in the operating conditions at Saudi Arabian non-oil producing private sector companies. The headline index posted 56.7 compared to 58.7 in September. The rate of improvement in October was the slowest in three months. The survey showed a slower pace of growth of both output and new orders, whereas new export orders rise at fastest pace in survey history.

Last month, the UAE announced a three-year federal spending plan of about USD 38.1 billion, a 15% increase over the previous plan for 2011-2013. As part of the three-year plan, the budget of 2014 is also announced with total expenditures of around USD 12.6 billion. Around 51% of the budget is announced to be assigned to social development and welfare projects. The UAE’s non-oil producing private sector companies reported a solid rise in order intakes during October, with the rate of growth in new work the second-highest recorded in the survey history. The PMI of last month indicated a further increase in output. The pace of expansion eased to the slowest in three months, but remained sharp overall. The index remained in the expansion territory in October posting 56.6.