Bangkok--2 Jun--Standard & Poor's
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services believes that the fundamentals underlying the credit quality of California and Greece are diverging, according to a report updating a comparison of the situation originally published May 3, 2011, on RatingsDirect on the Global Credit Portal. The update, "California And Greece: The Credit Divide Widens", points out that, given the factors underlying the downgrade of the Hellenic Republic (Greece), the California credit situation is now even less alike that of the sovereign.
"While both may have some trouble accessing markets for some of their respective debts, not all uncertainty about market access is equal," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Gabriel Petek. "In contrast to Greece, we believe that if California has a market access problem, it is likely to be a transient situation that does not immediately threaten its ability to service its existing debts," added Mr. Petek.
Greece may need to restructure its debt, which would be an event of default under our criteria. California has plans to go to the market with revenue anticipation notes but must have its budget in place in order to do so.
The report is available to subscribers of RatingsDirect on the Global Credit Portal at www.globalcreditportal.com. If you are not a RatingsDirect subscriber, you may purchase a copy of the report by calling (1) 212-438-7280 or sending an e-mail to
[email protected]. 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:
Edward Sweeney, New York (1) 212-438-6634,
[email protected]
Analyst Contacts:
Gabriel Petek, CFA, San Francisco (1) 415-371-5042
Marko Mrsnik, Madrid +34 913 896 953