Bangkok--1 Nov--Standard & Poor's
Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research has published its most recent "Global Potential Rising Stars (Premium)" report. The report notes the upgrade of three issuers to investment grade ('BBB-' and higher) from speculative grade ('BB+' and lower) since the previous report. This brings the year-to-date 2010 tally of rising stars to 23 issuers with rated debt worth US$46.7 (?33.4) billion.
Standard & Poor's defines potential rising stars as entities rated 'BB+' with either a positive outlook or ratings on CreditWatch with positive implications. The current potential rising star tally has risen by two issuers to a total of 19, with US$62.3 (?44.7) billion in rated debt. By issuer count, this exceeds our average count in the past 12 months by three.
In contrast, the count of entities about to cross over in the opposite direction (potential fallen angels) is at 55, with rated debt worth US$284.4 (?203.9) billion. This is down from the 18-year record high of 82 in March 2009.
"Despite recent positive developments, we currently expect more credit quality deterioration than improvement," said Diane Vazza, head of Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research, noting that potential fallen angels maintain their lead over potential rising stars at a ratio of 4 to 1.
The standard version of this article is part of our standard Global Fixed Income Research content. The premium version contains expanded analysis of the article's most significant points, typically broken out by sector and region. Also in the premium version are in-depth charts and tables, the underlying data of which are available for download. Ratings information can also be found on Standard & Poor's public Web site by using the Ratings search box located in the left column at www.standardandpoors.com. Members of the media may request a copy of this report by contacting the media representative provided.
Media Contact:
Mimi Barker, New York (1) 212-438-5054,
[email protected]
Analyst Contact:
Diane Vazza, New York (1) 212-438-2760