Rating agency Standard & Poor's on Wednesday raised Turkey's sovereign credit rating to BB-plus from BB, just a hair below investment grade, on a rebalancing economy and progress on Kurdish issues. "The Turkish economy appears to be slowly rebalancing, without undermining its relatively strong fiscal performance," S&P said in a statement. The outlook for the rating is stable. The upgrade is belated and still does not reflect the country's current economic outlook, Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Wednesday, but he said the upgrade was encouraging. S&P's upgrade of Turkey's sovereign credit rating will help Turkish firms access financing, Simsek added.