MELBOURNE (Standard&Poor's) Sept. 4, 2001--Standard&Poor's today affirmed its double-'A'/Stable/'A-1'-plus ratings on National Australia Bank Ltd.'s (The National) following its A$3.05 billion (US$1.75 billion) write-down of Homeside Lending Inc. (Homeside) on September 3, although its reputation as Asia-Pacific's highest-rated bank and as a strong manager of banking and related risks has been sullied. Supporting the affirmation is The National's strong ability to internally generate capital, which, along with its recent one-off A$2.1 billion profit from the sale of Michigan National Corp. (Michigan) has cushioned the effects of the reduction in the carrying value of Homeside on its core capital position. The write-down also is viewed in the context of The National's traditional expertise in risk management within
