MELBOURNE -- Standard&Poor's CreditWire 12/16/98 -- Standard&Poor's today affirmed its double-'A'-minus/'A-1'-plus counterparty credit ratings on Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ), and revised the rating outlook to stable from negative. The outlooks on ANZ's subsidiaries also were revised to stable from negative (see list below). The rating outlook was changed to negative from stable in February 1998, reflecting ANZ's relatively high exposure to troubled Asian economies. During fiscal 1998, the bank has reduced these exposures by about 36% in Australian dollar terms. Accordingly, total on- and off-balance-sheet exposure to the Asia-Pacific region was 6.8% of total assets, (11.6% in 1997), at Sept. 30, 1998. In particular, exposures to the highest risk markets—Indonesia, Malaysia, South
