...Speculative Grade Drives 3Q Downgrades: U.S. speculative-grade nonfinancial corporates generated the most downgrades since second-quarter 2009, as 4.4% of the segment was affected in the third quarter. The $44 billion in downgrades were nearly a 2:1 ratio over upgrades, a reversal from the previous quarter. For the first nine months of the year, the speculative-grade portion of the market experienced downgrades totaling $94 billion compared to upgrades of $89 billion. Investment grade included minimal rating changes during the third quarter (downgrades were at 0.5% while upgrades were at 0.1%), but for the year-on-volume basis there has been nearly six times more downgrades than upgrades. Overall, downgrades affected 5.7% of the market while upgrades reached 2.9%. Industrials, EUI Lead 3Q Downgrades: The continuing commodities struggles resulted in more third-quarter downgrades and defaults in Metals & Mining and Energy. Industrials and EUI (Energy, Utilities and Infrastructure) composed...
