Following a review of BoCom under Standard&Poor's revised bank criteria (published on Nov. 9, 2011), we have raised our long-term issuer credit rating on BoCom to 'A-' from 'BBB+'. The outlook is stable. Our rating on BoCom reflects the bank's 'bbb-' anchor, its "strong" business position, "moderate" capital and earnings, "adequate" risk position, "above-average" funding, and "adequate" liquidity. The rating also reflects our classification of BoCom as a government-related entity and the "high" likelihood of extraordinary government support for the bank. The stable outlook primarily reflects the stable outlook on the long-term sovereign rating on China. It also reflects our expectation that BoCom is likely to have an adequate buffer for potential volatility in its credit performances. As
