FRANKFURT (Standard&Poor's) Nov. 12, 2002--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that Commerzbank AG's (A-/Negative/A-2) persistently weak results and strained financial flexibility underscore concerns about further negative implications of the fierce economic and competitive environment on Commerzbank's financial profile and business franchise. "Commerzbank has continued to make progress with respect to cost cutting, but further rigorous measures are needed to restore profitability in the foreseeable future," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Stefan Best. As part of its ongoing surveillance, Standard&Poor's will shortly meet with management to discuss the bank's plans to cope with the forthcoming challenges. Commerzbank recorded a pretax loss of €113 million in the third quarter of 2002 and a modest pretax profit
