TORONTO (Standard&Poor's) Aug. 15, 2002--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services today said it raised its short-term corporate credit and global scale commercial paper ratings on telecommunications company BCE Inc. to 'A-1' from 'A-2'. At the same time, Standard&Poor's raised its Canadian national scale commercial paper ratings on the Montreal, Que.-based company to 'A-1(Mid)' from 'A-1(Low)'. In addition, the ratings outstanding on the company were affirmed. The outlook is stable. "The commercial paper ratings at BCE were raised to reflect a criteria adjustment on this specific instrument only and do not represent a change in the overall credit profile of the company," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Linli Chee. Based on a consolidated approach, the investment-grade ratings
