LONDON (S&P Global Ratings) Oct. 5, 2016--S&P Global Ratings said today that its ratings and outlook on U.K.-based international retailer Tesco PLC (BB+/Stable/B) are not affected, for now, by the group's announcement that its reported pension deficit increased by £3.2 billion to £5.9 billion post-tax, between end-February 2016 and end-August 2016. While the increase in the pension deficit is detrimental to Tesco's credit metrics, we believe that this is tempered by the following factors: We estimate that for the financial year ending February 2017, Tesco's adjusted debt to EBITDA ratio will remain at about 5.0x. The deficit funding plan will remain unchanged through the next two financial years and for most of calendar year 2018, and as such will not
