On July 11, 2005, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services raised its counterparty credit rating on Singapore's DBS Bank Ltd. to 'AA-/A-1+' from 'A+/A-1'. The outlook is stable. At the same time, Standard&Poor's assigned its 'B+' bank fundamental strength rating (BFSR) rating to the bank. The rating upgrade reflects Standard&Poor's expectation that DBS Bank's risk management systems' improvement in the coming years would be adequate to sustain the bank's strong credit profile. Although a cyclical credit downturn in Asia over the medium term is possible, the bank is expected to weather such a downturn notwithstanding some negative impact on the bank's asset quality and bottom-line performance. DBS Bank Ltd. Ratings Raised To From Counterparty credit rating AA-/Stable/A-1+
