On Jan. 23, 2007, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services lowered its long-term counterparty credit and insurer financial strength ratings on Italy-based composite insurer Società Cattolica di Assicurazione to 'A-' from 'A' and removed them from CreditWatch, where they were placed on Nov. 17, 2006, with negative implications. The outlook is stable. The downgrade reflects the weakened competitive position of Cattolica arising from the termination of its shareholder agreement concerning Banco Popolare di Verona e Novara SCRL's life insurance unit BPV Vita SpA and related exclusive distribution agreement. As a result, Cattolica's life business will drop and concentration in property/casualty (P/C) insurance will consequently increase. Concentration in the motor business is somewhat alleviated by Cattolica's new 50-50 joint venture with Mapfre,
