...NEW YORK (Standard & Poor's) Jan. 28, 2015--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today that Caterpillar Inc.'s (A/Stable/A-1) fourth-quarter 2014 results and 2015 outlook signal that the sharp drop in the price of oil and already low prices of other key commodities will continue to negatively affect, directly or indirectly, most of Caterpillar's businesses, particularly energy and transportation and the resource industries segment. Under our updated forecast we do not currently envision an impact on the ratings or outlook on the company since we think there is sufficient headroom for a soft 2015. The company reported lower order rates for products used in drilling and well-servicing, which are more sensitive to the price of oil than products for large energy infrastructure projects, such as gas turbines and compressors. We expect profitability to weaken on lower volumes. Other headwinds include the high U.S. dollar relative to other currencies and, although of lesser impact, slower growth...
