Fitch upgrades Ecopetrol

Fitch Ratings said it upgraded Ecopetrol SA's foreign- and local-currency issuer default ratings to BBB and BBB+ from BBB- and BBB, respectively.

The outlook also was revised to stable from positive.

Fitch also upgraded all of the company's senior unsecured obligations totaling $5 billion and amortizing on 2018, 2019, 2023 and 2043 to BBB from BBB-.

The upgrade reflects the upgrade of Colombia's sovereign foreign- and local-currency issuer default ratings to BBB and BBB+.

The upgrade of the sovereign is underpinned by Colombia's improvement in its external accounts and positive government-debt dynamics, which support the convergence of external and fiscal credit metrics with rating peers, Fitch said.

Ecopetrol's ratings are linked to the credit profile of the Republic of Colombia, which owns 88.5% of the company's total capital, the agency said.

The company is closely linked with the Colombian government through its reliance upon the receipt of the price difference from selling fuel in the local market instead of the export market, Fitch said.

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