| Abstract: | Standard&Poor's investment-grade and speculative-grade composite spreads widened yesterday to 231 basis points (bps) and 715 bps, respectively, owing largely to a decline in the Treasury yield after the Federal Reserve Bank announced a continuation of near-zero rates in the near term. By rating, the investment-grade spreads widened by an average of 6 bps to 157 bps for 'AA', 194 bps for 'A', and 286 bps for 'BBB'. The speculative-grade spreads expanded by an average of 16 bps, with 'BB' widening to 514 bps, 'B' to 693 bps, and 'CCC' to 1,132 bps. By sector, industrials expanded by the largest margin of 9 bps to 372 bps, followed by telecommunications, which widened 8 bps to 339 bps. Financial institutions
|