Moody's, whose rating for Portugal is'Ba1', one level below investment grade, said that this reflected "Portugal’s sound access to the market and the proactive management of the sovereign debt".


However, despite considering the move as “positive”, Moody's believes that the "early payment is not enough to bring about any upgrade in Portugal’s rating".


Portugal intends to repay €14 billion earlier than scheduled to the IMF between this year and 2017.