S&P report says majority of new potential fallen angels are in India

The number of global fallen angels is 15 so far in 2012 (through May 8)--four more than our previous report, said an article published today by Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research, titled "Fallen Angels In Emerging And Developed Markets, Including The U.S. And Europe: Indian Banks Increase The Total Count Of Potential Fallen Angels."

We define fallen angels as issuers Standard & Poor's Ratings Services downgrades to speculative grade from investment grade. "The fallen angel count through May 8, 2012, is two less than the total for the same period in 2011," said Diane Vazza, head of Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research. The 15 fallen angels accounted for $192.9 (EUR148.3) billion in rated debt. "Since our last report, we added 16 entities to the potential fallen angels list. One of these is the Republic of India, and eight are India-based banks," said Ms. Vazza.
The banks placement on the list follows the outlook revision on the Republic of India. Potential fallen angels are issuers rated 'BBB-' with either negative outlooks or ratings on CreditWatch with negative implications. The 53 potential fallen angels have $190 (EUR146.1) billion in rated debt. By region, Europe has the most potential fallen angels, with 21 as of May 8, 2012. The bank sector leads the list of potential fallen angels, with 21.


Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012