<h1>GST reforms could bolster consumption and growth, offsetting external tariff risks and supporting sovereign credit resilience.</h1> Fitch affirmed India's sovereign rating at BBB-, attributing support to robust growth and solid external finances while identifying high fiscal deficits, elevated debt and lagging governance metrics as constraints. The agency flagged proposed external tariffs as a downside risk but stated that proposed GST rate rationalisation into a two tier structure could support consumption and partly offset those growth risks. Fitch also observed that significant structural reforms on land and labour face political difficulty nationally, though some state level reform momentum may continue, and noted persistent trade barriers despite bilateral agreements.