Bangkok--25 Feb--Standard & Poor's
Standard & Poor's investment-grade composite spread tightened 13 basis points (bps) to 467 bps yesterday, while its speculative-grade counterpart widened 4 bps to 1,374 bps. Rating spreads tightened an average of 10 bps for investment-grade ratings, compressing the 'AA' spread to 333 bps, 'A' to 396 bps, and 'BBB' to 587 bps. The speculative-grade rating spreads widened an average of 13 bps, expanding the 'BB' spread to 891 bps, 'B' to 1,502 bps, and 'CCC' to 3,143 bps.
Industry spreads tightened for the most part, with financial institutions compressing 8 bps to 708 bps, industrials by 12 bps to 825 bps, utilities by 11 bps to 443 bps, and telecommunications by 5 bps to 613 bps. Banks, on the other hand, widened by a substantial 26 bps to 627 bps-—the widest single-day change since the end of November.
With speculative-grade defaults accelerating, a higher preponderance of credit downgrades, and a general malaise about the future of the economy, we expect spreads to remain at their elevated levels for some time as investors, the credit markets, and the economy cautiously tread through the current recessionary period.
Media Contact:
Mimi Barker, New York (1) 212-438-5054, [email protected]
Analyst Contact:
Diane Vazza, New York (1) 212-438-2760
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