S&P affirmed the ratings of the Russian Federation and improved the forecasts

International rating agency Standard&Poor's confirmed on Friday long-term sovereign rating of Russia at the level of "BB +" and improved its outlook to "stable" from "negative".
S&P said, that they are waiting for the growth of Russia's economy in the years 2017-19 by an average of 1.6 percent after an expected decline in GDP in the current year by 1%.
The agency expects that the economic growth in Russia is due to a slight recovery in oil prices and increased oil and gas sector in terms of volume as well as the rise outside of the oil sector, mainly related to household consumption.
S&P said that the outlook revision reflects the agency's opinion that the external risks for the Russian economy decreased significantly. It expects that the economy and the policy process in Russia will continue to adapt to the low oil prices.
According to S&P, the agency can raise the rating if the financial stability and the prospects for economic growth in Russia will improve more than it predicts, probably due to the softening of the sanctions against Russia because of countrys role in the Ukrainian conflict, or significantly stronger growth oil prices than currently expected.
Rating may be reduced if the geopolitical events will lead to a significant tightening of anti-Russian sanctions, and if GDP growth or the state budget or balance of payments seriously deteriorate compared to current forecasts.