HONG KONG (Standard&Poor's) Sept. 21, 2012--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services today assigned its 'BB-' rating to the proposed issue of senior unsecured notes by China Hongqiao Group Ltd. (BB/Stable/--; cnBBB-/--). At the same time, we assigned our 'cnBB+' Great China regional scale rating to the proposed notes. The rating is subject to our review of the final issuance documentation. We expect Hongqiao, an aluminum producer, to use the proceeds from the proposed notes for expansion of its production scale, refinancing its debts, and for general corporate purposes. The issue rating is one notch below its long-term corporate credit rating to reflect the structural subordination risk the offshore bondholders face in the event of default, as we project the
