On Dec. 16, 2003, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed the ratings on Wilmington, Del.-based GrafTech International Ltd. and removed them from CreditWatch, where they were placed with positive implications on Oct. 3, 2003, following the company's announcement of an increase in their common stock offering to a potential 25.3 million shares from 16 million shares. Although $190 million of debt has been repaid from the proceeds, leverage (debt to EBITDA) is still aggressive. In order for ratings to be upgraded, the company will need to achieve further sustained improvement in leverage over the course of a business cycle. The outlook is positive. The ratings reflect GrafTech's significant exposure to cyclical steel markets and a very aggressive financial profile. Partially
