HONG KONG (Standard&Poor's) Jan. 14, 2009--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it had lowered to 'B' from 'B+' the ratings on Korea-based Hynix Semiconductor Inc.'s (Hynix) US$500 million senior unsecured notes due 2017 and US$583.4 million senior unsecured notes due 2012, reflecting our opinion that the potential for recovery in the event of default has deteriorated. This follows the company's recent procurement of a Korean won (KRW) 500 billion secured loan from its major shareholders. Under our current rating policy, it is possible for the rating on a company's senior debt to be lowered if the prospect for recovery weakens materially as a result of large priority liabilities. In the case of Hynix's senior unsecured notes,
