... Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A.'s (BBVA) Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) is one notch above Spain's sovereign rating (BBB+/Stable). This reflects the diversification benefits from its solid retail franchises in several countries outside Spain, namely Mexico, Turkey, the US and some in South America. The rating also reflects the bank's modest risk appetite, improving asset quality, satisfactory capitalisation and resilient earning generation. Fitch Ratings views BBVA's credit profile as correlated with the Spanish sovereign's despite the international diversification. This is reflected, among other things, in domestic performance and asset quality, which have been sensitive to the economic environment. Funding access, stability and costs are also typically influenced by broad perceptions of sovereign risk. Improving Asset Quality: BBVA's non-performing loans (NPLs) ratio is held back by its large share of loans in Spain. Asset quality...
