MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - Fitch Ratings says it has upgraded Memphis, Tennessee’s bond rating.
Fitch said in a news release Wednesday that the city’s general obligation bond rating and issuer default rating has improved from AA- to AA.
The ratings agency says Memphis has shown operational stability “while continuing on its track to fully fund actuarially determined pension requirements by fiscal 2020.”
Bond ratings are an indication of financial strength and show an entity’s ability to repay the bond principal and interest.
Fitch said Memphis has a “deep and diverse economic base” anchored in transportation and distribution. The agency notes that wealth levels are below the state and national averages “and poverty levels are elevated at about 28 percent.”
The agency says property taxes are the city’s largest revenue source, at about 45 percent.
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