Bangkok--1 Jul--Standard & Poor's, As of June 16, 2008, the consumer products, media and entertainment, and retail/restaurants sectors remain most susceptible to economic and credit-market turbulence, according to an article published today by Standard & Poor's. The article, which is titled "Stress In Corporate America: As Confidence Drops, Credit Conditions Worsen (Premium)," says that these sectors consistently lead risk in our lists of distressed companies (defined as speculative-grade companies with securities trading in excess of 1,000 basis points above U.S. Treasuries), weakest links (companies rated 'B-' or lower with either a negative outlook or on CreditWatch with negative implications), and potential bond downgrades (investment-grade or speculative-grade companies that have either a negative outlook or on CreditWatch with negative implications). "Weakness in the consumer products, media and entertainment, and retail/restaurants sectors is a result of U.S. consumers' diminished economic prospects," said Diane Vazza, head of Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research Group. "Consumer spending is critical to continued economic expansion, as it accounts for 70% of the U.S. GDP." These cyclical sectors rely heavily on consumer spending, which has recently declined after showing resilience in 2007. "We expect consumer spending to grow only 1.4% in 2008," Ms. Vazza added. "This is a deceleration compared with 2.9% in 2007 and 3.1% in 2006." As a result of increased gasoline prices and falling home values, consumer confidence has plunged to its lowest level in more than 15 years, opening the potential for even larger decreases in spending than are currently forecast. This article is part of our premium Global Fixed Income Research content, which is available to premium subscribers of RatingsDirect, the real-time Web-based source for Standard & Poor's credit ratings, research, and risk analysis, at www.ratingsdirect.com. 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