The stable outlook on the ratings on Citibank Korea Inc. (CKI) reflects Standard&Poor's Ratings Services' expectation that the bank's asset quality will not deteriorate significantly and it will be able to maintain the current level of capitalization for the coming 18 months, despite increasing pressure from credit risks due to highly leveraged households in Korea. However, the ratings could be affected by material developments at Citigroup Inc. (A-/Negative/A-2), CKI, or both. Thus, the ratings on CKI could come under downward pressure if the bank's asset quality deteriorates beyond our assumptions due to credit risk. On the other hand, we could raise the ratings on CKI if it strengthens its capitalization and maintains the improvement, which would include keeping
