Bangkok--27 Jul--Standard & Poor's
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services upgraded six issuers to investment grade ('BBB-' and higher) from speculative grade ('BB+' and lower) since our most recent rising stars report, said an article published today by Standard & Poor's, titled "Global Potential Rising Stars (Premium)." This brings the year-to-date 2010 tally of rising stars to 16 issuers with rated debt worth US$32.43 (?25.79) billion.
Issuers poised to acquire rising star status total 15. By issuer count, this is one more than the average of the past 12 months. We define potential rising stars as entities rated 'BB+' with either a positive outlook or ratings on CreditWatch with positive implications.
In contrast, the count of entities about to cross over in the opposite direction (potential fallen angels) is at 64. This is down from the 18-year record high of 82 in March 2009.
"As of July 9, 2010, rising stars lead fallen angels by five," said Diane Vazza, head of Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research. "Despite recent positive developments, we currently expect more credit quality deterioration than improvement as potential fallen angels maintain their lead over potential rising stars at a ratio of 4 to 1."
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 by using the Ratings search box located in the left column at www.standardandpoors.com. 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