South Africa on Friday ducked a much-feared downgrade of its debt to "junk" status as the S&P Global-Ratings agency stood by its current ratings.

The agency warned, however, that the outlook for South Africa's rating remains negative because of weak growth and political tensions.

S&P currently rates South African long-term debt at BBB-, just one notch above junk, a status that prevents many international investors from buying into sovereign bonds.