CHICAGO (Standard&Poor's) June 2, 2011--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today that it assigned its 'BBB-' issue rating to Benton Harbor, Mich.-based Whirlpool Corp.'s (BBB-/Positive/A-3) proposed $250 million senior unsecured notes due 2021, which Whirlpool plans to issue off its shelf registration statement. The rating is based on preliminary terms and conditions. Pro forma for the proposed transaction, total debt outstanding is about $2.5 billion. We believe the company plans to use the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, including repayment of its $300 million 6.125% notes due June 2011. Pro forma for the proposed note offering, credit measures are largely unchanged, including about 2.8x leverage, 5x EBITDA interest coverage, and 28% ratio of funds
