NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's CreditWire) March 5, 1999--Standard&Poor's today lowered its long-term counterparty ratings on Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank) and related entities to single-'A'-plus from double-'A'-minus and its short-term counterparty ratings to 'A-1' from 'A-1'-plus. At the same time, Standard&Poor's lowered its senior, subordinated, preferred stock, and commercial paper ratings on Scotiabank and related entities (see list). All ratings are removed from CreditWatch with negative implications, where they were placed on Dec. 18, 1998. The outlook is stable. The rating action reflects Scotiabank's increasing exposure to emerging markets, in part through investments in second-tier and often troubled banks in Latin America, as well as its weaker balance sheet compared with that of other Canadian
