S&P affirms Italy's BBB- long-term debt rating, outlook stable

Standard&Poor's reiterated its rating on Italy's long-term debt on expectations for continued growth, reforms and a stable debt load.

Analysts at the ratings agency kept the country's debt at BBB-, the lowest investment grade rating, with a 'stable' outlook.

"The stable outlook reflects our expectation that the Italian government will continue to adopt structural reform measures such as a new competition law, and will continue to improve the effectiveness of the judiciary and public administration, while at the same time maintaining a stable level of government debt to GDP," they said.

Italy's general government debt pile would remain "broadly stable" at roughly 131% of the country's gross domestic product, S&P said, before declining towards the end of the agency's 2018 to 2020 forecast period.