NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Dec. 19, 2008--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services lowered its counterparty credit rating on Fifth Third Bancorp to 'A-/A-2' from 'A+/A-1'. We also lowered our rating on Fifth Third Bank to 'A/A-1' from 'AA-/A-1+'. All ratings were removed from CreditWatch, where they were placed on Sept. 3, 2008. The outlook is negative. "This rating action is consistent with our ongoing reassessment of the financial services industry," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Daniel E. Teclaw. Specifically, we believe that the banking system's credit outlook will continue to weaken and that the economic environment will remain tepid. At the same time, the housing and manufacturing sectors continue to decline, along with a decline in household wealth, which
