|
|
 |
|
Viewing report
|
|
|
|
Industry Report Card: U.S. Electric Utility Sector Continues To Benefit From Strong Liquidity Amid Current Credit Crunch Mar 08
Standard & Poors, March 2008
Abstract
The U.S. electric utility industry withstood a turbulent first quarter of 2008. Strong liquidity positions for the sector as a whole enabled the companies to deal with the fallout from auction rate securities and insured deals in a credit-neutral manner. Debt issuance of nearly $10 billion in the quarter benefited from falling interest rates. The significant dislocations in the credit markets, spurred in part from credit concerns of the monoline insurance companies, caused many companies to experience difficulties in performing successful auctions for auction rate securities, long-term debt securities whose interest rate is set on a short-term basis (mode) via an auction process, including 7-day, 28-day, and 31-day. The effect has not been uniform across all issuers, with some issuers...
Standard and Poors RatingsXpress Credit Research provides in-depth coverage of international corporates, financial institutions, insurance companies, utilities, sovereigns and structured finance programs. RatingsXpress Credit Research lets users determine the credit rating of holdings and identify key factors underlying an issuer's creditworthiness, distinguishes the different risk exposures for new and existing deals, and provides an understanding of how their analysts interpret key regulatory, political and environmental events and their economic impact.
Research Type: Commentary
Criteria articles describe the thought process and methodology Standard & Poor's analysts use in determining ratings. These commentary pieces discuss both the quantitative (economic and financial) and qualitative (business analysis and caliber of management) aspects of the analysis, as well as legal issues.
|
|
|
|
