... Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A.'s (BBVA) Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) is one notch above Spain's sovereign rating, reflecting diversification benefits from the bank's solid retail franchises in several countries outside Spain, namely Mexico, Turkey, the US and a number of South American countries. The ratings also factor in the bank's modest risk appetite, weaker, albeit improving, asset-quality metrics relative to peers, satisfactory capitalisation and resilient earnings. Strong Links with Sovereign: BBVA's risk profile is nevertheless correlated to that of the Spanish sovereign, as reflected in the sensitivity of its performance and asset quality to Spain's economic environment. The bank's cost of market funding and the stability of the investor base are also typically influenced by perceptions of sovereign risk. An improved macro-economic environment in Spain should feed through to the bank's asset quality and profitability. Improving...
