ST.GEORGE’S, GRENADA, APRIL 17th 2009_ Prime Minister Hon. Tillman Thomas has welcomed the news that Grenada has jumped 10 places in the Institutional Investor’s March 2009 country credit rating report. The semi-annual credit worthiness report, conducted every six months by the respected Institutional Investor Magazine moved Grenada from 116th, where it was ranked in September 2008, to 106th in the world community of nations. “This shows that the steps we took to ensure proper management of the country are working. We will continue to work towards a strong economy that will benefit from the rebirth of our productive sectors and stands to gain even further, when the world rebounds from this economic crisis,” the Prime Minister, who is in Trinidad for the fifth Summit of the Americas, said Friday. The report comes amidst the global economic d9ownturn and the Grenada governments attempts to stimulate the economy with the recently announced 16M stimulus, which saw support for job creation, infrastructural development and investments in the Agricultural sector. The news comes on the heels of the findings of the latest review of the International Monetary Fund, which applauded Grenada’s economic management and fiscal performance. Finance Minister, Nazim Burke was cautiously excited, suggesting that while the news is good, it marks the start of a process designed to restore Grenada’s ability to access international financing and manage its own debt, which spiraled almost out of control, within the last eight years. The Finance Minister said the rating, along with the recent pronouncements of the IMF shows there is growing international confidence in the new atmosphere of responsible economic management in St. George’s. “This shows that this government’s programme of financial management is beginning to catch the eyes of the international community. This is a positive development that we are pleased about. We are committed to working with the international community to move this rating even further by managing our debt, while creating jobs for our people and developing our country,” Mr. Burke said. The rating is even more significant as all the major economies of the world are performing negatively, with the United States falling by five points, as it struggles to implement its own economic stimulus package. In the case of CARICOM countries, the Bahamas improved ten places from 51 to 41, Guyana moved 15 places from 126 to 111, Trinidad and Tobago improved by one place from 47 to 46, Barbados moved up 12 places from 61 to 49 while the credit rating of Belize and Jamaica fell from 119 to 132 and 91 to 99 respectively.