HONG KONG (Standard&Poor's CreditWire) Dec. 18, 2000--Standard&Poor's today affirmed its double-'B'-plus long-term foreign currency counterparty rating on the Bank of China following the recent announcement that it intends to reorganize its Hong Kong operations and those of its sister banks into a single main entity and two subsidiaries. While the reorganization is expected to benefit the Bank of China group in terms of improved cost and marketing efficiencies, the rating remains constrained by the bank's estimated high level of nonperforming loans in the mainland China market. The rating continues to incorporate a degree of implicit Chinese government support. The outlook on the rating is stable. It is likely, although by no means certain, that the Bank
