LONDON (Standard&Poor's) March 20, 2002--Standard&Poor's said today it lowered its long-term corporate credit rating on Switzerland-based cement producer Holcim Ltd. to triple-'B'-plus from single-'A'-minus due to the financial impact of the group's growth strategy. The outlook is stable. The short-term corporate credit rating remains at 'A-2'. "The group's acquisitive growth strategy over the past few years has resulted in financial ratios that are no longer consistent with a single-'A'-minus rating," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Vanessa Brathwaite. Holcim's growth strategy has meant that the expected improvement in the funds from operations (FFO)-to-debt ratio to 30% is unlikely to be met in the mid-to-long term. Therefore, the long-term rating has been downgraded to triple-'B'-plus, a level
