On Oct. 19, 2006, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its ratings, including the 'B' long-term and 'B-3' short-term corporate credit ratings, on Continental Airlines Inc. The outlook was revised to stable from negative. Houston, Texas-based Continental has about $17 billion of debt and leases. The outlook revision reflects ongoing improvements in earnings and cash flow, along with strengthened liquidity. The airline reported a $309 million net profit before special items for the first three quarters of 2006, reversing a loss of the same period last year, and had $2.5 billion of unrestricted cash at Sept. 30. Continental, like other large U.S. airlines, has benefited from strong revenues and ongoing cost reductions, which has more than offset much higher fuel
