Bangkok--14 Aug--Standard & Poor's Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today it had assigned its 'A' long-term and 'A-1' short-term issuer credit ratings to China-based China Export & Credit Insurance Corp. (Sinosure). The outlook is positive. "The issuer credit ratings on Sinosure are aligned with those of the People's Republic of China," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Kim Eng Tan. "This reflects the close support from the Chinese government and the important policy role played by Sinosure, a role that is unlikely to be undertaken by a commercial insurance company in an efficient manner." Sinosure is China's only policy-oriented insurance company that specializes in export credit insurance. The company was set up in 2001 by the central government to promote Chinese exports and investments in accordance with the country's policies. The central government is the sole shareholder of Sinosure and oversees the company's operations through the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry appoints the company's supervisory committee, to which Sinosure's management reports, and approves the company's annual business plans. In the State Council document authorizing the setup of the company, the government also commits to maintain the company's capital at a sufficient level. Complete ratings information 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. All ratings affected by this rating action can be found on Standard & Poor's public Web site at www.standardandpoors.com ; select Ratings in the left navigation bar, then Credit Ratings Search. Media Contact: David Wargin, New York (212)438-1579 [email protected] Analyst Contacts: KimEng Tan, Singapore (65) 6239-6350 Connie Wong, Hong Kong (852) 2533-3553