Bangkok--26 Jun--Standard & Poor's In June, the U.S. distress ratio returned to its all-time low of 0.8% from 0.9% in May, according to a report published June 22, 2007 by Standard & Poor's. The report, titled "U.S. Distressed Debt Monitor," said that the distress ratio has remained below 1% for four straight months. "As of June 15, distressed issues across eight sectors cumulatively affected debt worth $2.1 billion, slightly lower than the $2.4 billion reported last month," said Diane Vazza, head of Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research Group. "The health care and capital goods sectors displayed the highest propensity for distress as a share of total speculative-grade rated issues. The aerospace and defense sector ranked on top, but this sector's high ranking, however, should be qualified because the underlying sample size of speculative-grade issues is small." A total of 40 rated companies had issues trading at distressed levels at the various thresholds, down from 46 on last month's list and markedly lower than 97 companies listed in December 2006. Of the 11 companies listed at the 1,000 bps level, five were rated 'CCC+' or lower, and all but two were on CreditWatch with negative implications. Ms. Vazza added that "the 12-month moving average, also hit an all-time low at 1.77% this month from 2.01% in May. A year ago, the distress ratio and its moving average registered 3.7% and 5.3%." The report is available to subscribers of RatingsDirect, the real-time Web-based source for Standard & Poor's credit ratings, research, and risk analysis, at www.ratingsdirect.com . If you are not a RatingsDirect subscriber, you may purchase a copy of the report by calling (1) 212-438-9823 or sending an e-mail to [email protected] . Ratings information can also be found on Standard & Poor's public Web site at www.standardandpoors.com ; under Credit Ratings in the left navigation bar, select Find a Rating, then Credit Ratings Search. 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