On Jan. 29, 2004, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services revised the CreditWatch status on its 'BBB+' counterparty credit and debt ratings on the St. Paul Cos. Inc. (NYSE:SPC) and its 'A+' counterparty credit and financial strength ratings on SPC's insurance company subsidiaries (collectively, St. Paul) to CreditWatch Negative from CreditWatch Developing. The ratings on St. Paul were placed on CreditWatch on Nov. 17, 2003, following the company's announcement that its Board of Directors had approved a plan to merge with Travelers Property Casualty Corp. (NYSE:TAP.A) (A-/CreditWatch Negative/--; Travelers). The decision to revise the CreditWatch status to negative from developing reflects Standard&Poor's latest assessment on the financial strength of St. Paul on a standalone basis. Should the merger with
