BEIJING (AFP) - Moodys on Monday upgraded its ratings outlook for China to positive from stable, giving policymakers in Beijing the thumbs-up for how they have navigated the worst financial crisis in decades. Moodys Investors Service said it had based its decision on the resilient, robust and relatively stable macroeconomic performance during the turbulence of the past year. The Chinese authorities are successfully steering the economy through the turbulence of the global financial crisis and recession, and furthermore, they seem likely to remain vigilant to protect systemic stability from future threats and challenges, senior vice president Tom Byrne said in a statement. Policymakers and analysts have expressed confidence in Chinas recovery after the economy grew 8.9pc in the third quarter the fastest pace in a year. That compares with 7.9 percent growth in the second quarter and 6.1 percent in the first three months, the slowest pace in more than a decade. The World Bank last week raised its 2009 growth forecast to 8.4 percent, following similar moves by the International Monetary Fund and the Asian Development Bank. Chinas recovery has been driven by a four-trillion-yuan (586-billion-dollar) stimulus package unveiled a year ago and a record 8.67 trillion yuan in bank lending in the first nine months of 2009. But Moodys sounded a cautionary note, saying that while Chinas recovery seemed well-established, underlying risks to its long-term outlook remained. Further positive rating actions ... will hinge on continued macroeconomic and financial sector stability and on an assessment that Chinas state-sector-centric stimulus programme had not distorted long-term growth prospects or given rise to destabilising asset bubbles, the statement said.