Fitch affirms 2 rating for Tunisia's Banque Nationale

Fitch Ratings said it has affirmed Tunisia-based Banque Nationale Agricole's support rating at 2.

The support rating reflects what Fitch considers to be a high propensity of support from Banque Nationale Agricole's major shareholder, the Tunisian state.

Given the bank's systemic importance in Tunisia, state ownership and the Tunisian government's record of support for banks, Fitch said it believes there is a high probability that the state would support Banque Nationale Agricole, if ever it were necessary.

Fitch noted that credit risk remains a concern. Although clean-up measures in 2003 markedly improved asset quality, the bank's impaired loan ratio, at approximately 21% at the end of 2004, remains fairly high by international standards, Fitch said.

Banque Nationale Agricole benefits from large and stable client funding, Fitch said. However, to reduce maturity mismatches and strengthen funding, the bank has developed medium-term multilateral bank credit lines, Fitch said.

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