Tokyo -- Standard&Poor's CreditWire 3/19/98 -- Standard&Poor's today assigned its 'AAA' long-term rating to Nippon Telegraph&Telephone Corp.'s (NTT) US$1 billion 6% global notes due March 25, 2008. This is the first drawdown from the company's US$1.5 billion global securities registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The outlook on the rating is negative. The rating is based on NTT's dominant position and important role in the Japanese telecommunications market, as well as its strong financial profile compared with major international peers. Despite increased penetration by new common carriers in Japan, NTT maintains a very strong share of the domestic telephone market. Even after the recent downward revision of its earnings forecast, NTT expects
