We expect the global economic downturn to have a fairly benign impact on Australia, resulting in a mild and short recession in the country. We believe that, at the current rating level, ANZ will be able to withstand earnings pressure and impairments or credit losses arising from the recession, benefiting from its conservative lending standards relative to international peers, and a traditional retail and commercial banking model. Consequently, we have affirmed the 'AA/A-1+' ratings with a stable outlook. On July 1, 2009, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'AA/A-1+' issuer credit rating on Australia-based major bank Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) and ANZ's core subsidiaries. The outlook remains stable. The rating affirmation reflects our expectation that
