NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) June 20, 2008--Continental Airlines Inc. (B/Watch Neg/B-3) disclosed yesterday that it had raised about $163 million in a common stock offering, and that it plans to leave its current global airline alliance, SkyTeam, for a rival, the Star Alliance. Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said these developments do not affect its ratings on Continental, which remain on CreditWatch with negative implications, where they were placed May 22, 2008. The equity offering is part of Continental's efforts to bolster liquidity in the face of very high fuel prices and a weak economy. The airline also recently disclosed that it had entered into a new agreement with its credit card processing bank and provider of an affinity
