NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Nov. 6, 2013--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today the closing of the planned merger between Office Depot Inc. and OfficeMax Inc. has no effect on the 'B-' corporate credit rating or stable outlook on Office Depot at this time. We believed the merger would close in the fourth quarter of this year; as yet there is no new information regarding operating strategies and the new CEO of the company. The sector remains challenging as year-to-date sales declines have been weaker than expected at both companies, particularly at OfficeMax Inc., and we believe this may persist in 2014 as a result of competition and technological innovation leading to product obsolescence in the industry. While both
