Bangkok--3 Jun--Standard & Poor's
Amid persisting economic and financial distress, the speculative-grade default rate in the U.S. hit a new year-to-date high in May, said an article published today by Standard & Poor's.
The number of corporate defaults in 2009 continued the expansion seen at the end of 2008, with 25 more U.S. defaults in May, bringing the year-to-date total to 101, according to the article, titled "U.S. Credit Metrics Monthly: Default Rate Rises To 8.3% In May (Premium)."
After occurring in all sectors this past month, defaults are more concentrated in May, counted among only six sectors.
"The preliminary estimate for the U.S. 12-month-trailing speculative-grade default rate in May 2009 is 8.25%, which is subject to revision," said Diane Vazza, head of Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research Group. "This is up from the 6.75% in April and much higher than the 1.99% reported in May 2008."
"We expect the speculative-grade default rate to escalate to a mean forecast of 14.3% by April 2010, but it could reach as high as 18.5% if economic conditions are worse than expected," said Ms. Vazza.
The standard version of this article is part of our standard Global Fixed Income Research content. The premium version contains expanded analysis of the article's most significant points, typically broken out by sector and region. Also in the premium version are in-depth charts and tables, the underlying data of which are available for download. Ratings information can also be found on Standard & Poor's public Web site at www.standardandpoors.com; under Ratings in the left navigation bar, select Find a Rating. 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 Contacts:
Diane Vazza, New York (1) 212-438-2760