NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) March 22, 2004--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'AA-' rating to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey's (PANYNJ) $400 million consolidated bonds, 135th series, and affirmed the ratings on all outstanding consolidated notes and bonds issued by the PANYNJ. The outlook is stable. The action reflects Standard&Poor's continuing view that the PANYNJ's financial profile has remained strong enough to support the existing ratings because of its diversity of operations, strong liquidity, critical position in the New York/New Jersey region, and anticipated continued solid debt service coverage. Standard&Poor's concern with the PANYNJ's large ongoing capital program, however, somewhat offsets these strengths. The current five-year capital program (2004-2008) is
