Bangkok--21 Dec--Fitch Ratings Fitch Ratings-Bangkok/Hong Kong/Singapore-21 December 2007: Fitch Ratings (Thailand) has today affirmed the National Long-term rating of AEON Thana Sinsap (Thailand) Plc Public Company Limited (AEONTS) at 'BBB+(tha)', with a Stable Outlook, and its National Short-term rating at 'F2(tha)'. The ratings reflect AEONTS' niche market position, strong earnings and profitability in retail financing in Thailand, as well as its solid capital position and partial support from a strong foreign parent. AEONTS' high growth strategy over the last several years has raised concerns on its asset quality, while its delinquency rate has been on an upward trend. However, despite the continuing weakness in the operating environment in 2006 and 2007, the rise in delinquencies and provisioning expenses appears to have stabilised, although higher provision risks remain due to the weak environment. AEONTS' net income has continued to grow moderately, but at a slower rate compared to its previous years due to higher interest expenses and provisions on bad debts. The rising funding costs have affected AEONTS' margin, but it has been offset by higher fee-based income. AEONTS has continuously expanded into provincial areas, while its personal loans business has grown rapidly and is currently generating the most revenue for the company. Meanwhile, it has strengthened its risk management on origination policies and collection operations. It has also put in place a system with a large customer database to help identify the riskier customers, as well as to collect detailed information of customers for collection purpose. The company has also completely centralised its operations into four regional hubs, and reallocated workloads for more effective operations. AEONTS is a leading player in the low-income retail consumer finance market in Thailand. Its business activity is to provide a variety of retail finance services, including hire purchase, credit card, personal loans and factoring services.