On June 11, 2003, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services lowered its ratings on the members of Allstate Financial Group (see list) following its ongoing review of the group's prospective financial performance and competitive position in the savings and retirement businesses. The outlook is stable. (The ratings on Allstate Insurance Co. and Allstate Corp. are unaffected by today's rating action.) Standard&Poor's lowered these ratings because of several factors, including its negative outlook on the life insurance industry, the recent deterioration in the group's earnings compared with prior periods, and Standard&Poor's revised view of the parent/subsidiary rating relationship. Like many of its peers, the profitability of Allstate Financial's variable annuity and spread-based products has been negatively affected by
