NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Oct. 26, 2005--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it affirmed its 'BB-' corporate credit rating on Crown Holdings Inc. The outlook is stable. At the same time, Standard&Poor's lowered its senior secured debt rating on Eur460 million of first-priority senior secured notes due 2011 issued by wholly owned subsidiary Crown European Holdings S.A. to 'BB-' from 'BB'. The recovery rating on these notes was lowered to '2' from '1', now indicating expectations for substantial (80%-100%), not full, recovery in the event of a payment default. The downgrade and the change in the recovery rating reflect the significant increase in senior secured debt that results from the group's proposed bank credit facilities.
