On Feb. 23, 2006, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services revised to stable, from negative, its outlook on France-based IT services group Cap Gemini S.A., after the company reported significantly improved figures for second-half 2005. At the same time, Standard&Poor's affirmed its 'BB+' long-term corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on Cap Gemini. Revenues were up a solid 10%, year-on-year, in fourth-quarter 2005, on a comparable basis, largely reflecting the continued ramp-up of recently-won outsourcing contracts--outsourcing was up 10% in fourth-quarter 2005 and represented 38% of revenues, up from 32% in 2004. Cap Gemini's focus on operational improvement has enabled significant margin progress over the course of 2005. Continued cost-cutting, improving controls (which reduced cost overruns on technology
