S&P Global Credit Markets Digest - European Update

Business Wire, May 26, 2003

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 26, 2003

EUROPEAN UPDATE:

Here is the current lineup of top articles and research from Standard & Poor's:

COMING UP:
-- U.S. Health Insurance Midyear Outlook 2003: Enjoying the Payday
Heyday...While it Lasts
-- U.S. Life Insurance Midyear Outlook 2003: Whither the Wounded
Beast?
-- U.S. Personal-Lines Insurance Midyear Outlook 2003: Higher Premiums
Anchor Stability
-- U.S. Commercial-Lines Insurance Midyear Outlook 2003: a Battle of
the Titans?
-- The Reform Outlook for Mexico and Brazil
-- Accounting Issues Raised by Equity Stakes Among Spanish Banks
-- A Real Appetite for Mexico's ABS Market--Everybody Wins
-- U.S. Banks Exposure to Commercial Real Estate
-- The Mortgage Insurance Industry--Overview


UPCOMING TELECONFERENCES:
-- North American Building Materials, Homebuilder, and Home Center
Retail Credit Quality; Thurs., June 12, 10 AM
-- Forest Products Credit Quality; Tues., June 17, 10 AM
-- Trends in European Banking; Tues., June 17, 10 AM

All times U.S. Eastern. For complete details see ratingsdirect.com or
standardandpoors.com


PUBLISHED:

RESEARCH REPORTS

CORPORATES
-- Latin American Debt Refinancing: The Local Market Alternative
-- Requirements Contracts For U.S. Power Industry Examined in Report
-- Editor's note: You may be interested in the Web cast of a
conference titled "Standard & Poor's Perspectives on Pension Issues
Affecting Corporate Issuers," held in New York City on May 13. The URL
for the Web cast is:
www2.standardandpoors.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=sp/Page/
PressSpecialCoveragePg&b=5&r=1&s=3&ig=1032271272068

FINANCIAL SERVICES
-- Industry Report Card Released on Canadian Property & Casualty
Insurance
-- Economic Risk Harming Latin American Banking Systems

GLOBAL FIXED INCOME
-- S&P: U.S. Non-Financial Commercial Paper Levels Off
-- Global Rising Stars--MIA

SOVEREIGNS
-- Bomb Attacks Have No Direct Impact on Morocco's Credit Standing,
But Policy Responses Are Key
-- Malaysia's Latest Stimulus Package Dents Government Finances, But
Will Not Affect Ratings
-- Standard & Poor's Discusses Stability of English Caribbean in
Difficult Times

LOCAL AND REGIONAL GOVERNMENTS
-- Ratings History List: International Local and Regional Governments
Since 1975

STRUCTURED FINANCE
-- Brazil's Structured Market Is Coming Back to Life
-- Mutual Fund Fee Securitizations: A Surveillance Perspective
-- Mexican Servicer Evaluation Market Expected to Grow During 2003


RATING ACTIONS:

CORPORATE RATINGS
-- Tranz Rail's Rating Lowered to 'CC' from 'CCC', Outlook Negative

FINANCIAL SERVICES RATINGS
-- Ratings on Hokkaido, Hokuriku Banks Affirmed on Consolidation
Announcement

SOVEREIGN RATINGS
-- Korea's Planned US$1 Billion Notes Due 2013 Rated 'A-'; Sovereign
Ratings and Outlook Affirmed
-- Kingdom of Belgium EUR5 Billion Bond Rated 'AA+'; 'AA+/A-1+'
Ratings Affirmed; Outlook Stable -- Bulgaria LC Ratings Raised to
'BBB-/A-3'; Long-Term FC Ratings to 'BB+'; Outlook Stable

STRUCTURED FINANCE RATINGS
-- Preliminary 'AAA' Ratings Assigned to Orient Corp.'s JPY31.3
Billion Auto Loan ABS

LOCAL AND REGIONAL GOVERNMENT RATINGS
-- Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug FC Rating Raised to 'B', Outlook
Positive; Assigned 'ruA' National Scale Rating


RESEARCH ANALYSES:

CORPORATES
-- NEC Corp.
-- CMA CGM S.A.
-- Verizon Communications Inc.
-- Alliance Pipeline L.P.
-- Suez S.A.
-- Schneider Electric S.A.
-- CIR-Compagnie Industriali Riunite SpA

FINANCIAL SERVICES
-- ACOM Co. Ltd.
-- Fleming Mercantile Investment Trust PLC
-- Asia Life Assurance Society Ltd. (The)

LOCAL AND REGIONAL GOVERNMENTS
-- Stockholm County Council

STRUCTURED FINANCE
-- New Issue: Residential Asset Securities Corp. (2003-KS2)
-- New Issue: Red Orchid Secured Assets Ltd.