Standard & Poor's confirms Province of BC's Triple-A Credit Rating

I've received the following press release from the Province, advising that Standard and Poor's has re-confirmed the Provincial Government's Triple-A Credit Rating:

From the press release:

VICTORIA – Standard & Poor’s has affirmed the Province of British Columbia’s credit rating at AAA, the highest possible, noting the Province’s debt reduction has given B.C. an increased capacity to respond to the global recession, Finance Minister Colin Hansen announced today. “This is the third of the large agencies to confirm British Columbia’s high credit rating,” said Hansen. “The debt reduction we achieved –about $4 billion over the past three-year period–has meant we avoided much larger increase in debt that otherwise would have resulted from the recession.” S&P’s report notes, “Good cash and investment balances coupled with solid access to capital markets support what we view as B.C.’s strong credit profile.…

Supplementing this immediate support is solid access to capital markets for short- and long-term debt funding.” In October, Hansen and Ministry of Finance staff met with institutional investors and major investment firms in New York, Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver. The tour’s purpose was to broaden B.C.’s investor base, encourage investors to buy B.C. bonds and to update investors on developments within the Province. These measures help maintain the Province’s low borrowing costs and strengthen investor confidence in B.C. “Our government is working hard to ensure British Columbia recovers from the economic slowdown in the shortest time possible,” said Hansen. “The ongoing scrutiny from investors and bond rating agencies reminds us we cannot afford to become complacent. We need to remain prudent with our fiscal plans in order to effectively manage through the downturn and into recovery.”

Since November 2004, the Province has received seven credit rating upgrades. Most recently, Dominion Bond Rating Service upgraded B.C.’s credit rating to AA (high) in May 2007, Standard and Poor’s upgraded B.C. to AAA in May 2007, while Moody’s Investors Service upgraded B.C. to AAA in October 2006