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Standard & Poor's (S&P)

Standard & Poor’s is best known for stock market indices such as the US-based S&P 500 and for its credit ratings, competing against Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings. Rating agencies came under fire for issuing top ratings to pools of mortgages which included subprime loans and in February 2013, the US Justice Department filed a civil lawsuit against S&P, seeking US$5 billion in civil damages.

Chairman / President

Douglas L. Peterson

CEO / Managing Director

Douglas L. Peterson

CFO / Finance Director

Ewout Steenbergen

Industry

Financial Services

Website

spglobal.com/ratings

Headquarters address

55 Water Street, New York, NY 10041, USA

Stock Code

NYSE:SPGI

Year founded

1860

last updated:

30 September, 2024

A man passes a property agency in Mong Kok. Photo: Elson Li

Hong Kong property

Default of major developer could send shock waves through property market: S&P

‘Hong Kong’s residential property recovery may be slipping out of view,’ credit-rating agency says.

5 hours ago

Hong Kong economy

MTR Corp creditworthiness cut on soft Hong Kong property market, funding needs

29 Aug 2024 - 12:06AMvideocam

China's economic recovery

China’s crippling local government debt is getting worse: S&P Global Ratings

26 Jul 2024 - 6:15PM

Millionaires and billionaires

10 of the highest-paid CEOs in the US – their annual salaries, ranked

They might have to meet lofty goals and answer to shareholders, but running some of the US’s top companies comes with big paycheques, as the CEOs of Apple, Microsoft and Adobe prove

23 May 2024 - 6:00PM

Palo Alto Networks CEO Nikesh Arora, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and Coty CEO Sue Y. Nabi rake in plenty of dough. Photos: Getty Images, AFP

China's economic recovery

Explainer | Can China’s economic recovery be sustained? 4 takeaways from March’s PMI data

China’s purchasing managers’ indices in March provided more evidence that parts of the economy are gaining momentum in the first quarter, but analysts remained cautious about a long-term recovery.

4 Apr 2024 - 12:27AM

Hong Kong property

Hong Kong home prices to rebound in 2025, office market a concern: Goldman

The US investment bank says the residential sector will see a gradual recovery this year after the US Federal Reserve begins to cut rates and Hong Kong mortgage rates are lowered from the second quarter onwards.

12 Feb 2024 - 4:30PM

Banking & finance

China fines S&P Global (China) Ratings US$297,000 for business violations

China’s central bank on Friday published recent fines on six credit ratings firms, including the China unit of S&P Global, for violating rules.

3 Feb 2024 - 1:17AM

The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) building in Beijing, China. Photo: Bloomberg

China property

China’s once-mighty developers face brutal years after end of ‘golden age’

State-owned companies will dominate as the age of ‘fast leverage and fast growth’ is over, and developers face brutal years ahead, analysts said.

20 Jan 2024 - 11:05AMvideocam

China property

Developer Fantasia signs 36-month pact with Hangzhou firm to revive fortunes

Subsidiary Fantasia Group (China) will cooperate with Blue Green Shuangcheng under a ‘co-construction’ model, which will see them work together on implementing a range of measures to revive the group.

27 Oct 2023 - 4:39PMvideocam

China's economic recovery

‘Somebody has to eat the cost’: China’s monumental local debt challenge mounts

Deterioration of local-government finances has become a key concern for policymakers and investors amid the slower-than-expected economic recovery.

14 Sep 2023 - 11:29PM

Over the past few years, the central government has clamped down on the use of off-budget borrowing by local governments. Photo: Xinhua

Taiwan economy

Taiwan faces ‘crucial’ test as cross-strait tensions threaten growth, investment

Diversification by firms away from Taiwan could limit future investment, potentially muting economic growth, with capital already shifting to other Asian economies, including Malaysia, ratings agencies have warned.

6 Sep 2023 - 12:00PMvideocam

It is ‘crucial’ for Taiwan-based enterprises to continue to liaise with customers in mainland China and the United States, according to S&P Global Ratings. Photo: Getty Images

Banking & finance

Higher rates to drive profits as Hong Kong banks prepare to report results

Higher interest rates are expected to help drive profit gains at big Hong Kong lenders, including HSBC and Standard Chartered, in second quarter as US Federal Reserve prepares to hikes rates further.

25 Jul 2023 - 6:08PMvideocam

Bonds

Wanda commercial management unit’s bond falls to record low after S&P cuts rating

Bonds of Dalian Wanda Commercial Management Group, a unit of China’s biggest commercial property developer, tumbled on Thursday after ratings agency S&P Global downgraded its notes for a second time this week.

20 Jul 2023 - 7:05PMvideocam

The Philippines

Philippine central bank to push firms to reveal foreign debt

The monetary authority aims to send out requests in the next few months, seeking to head off potential risk to the nation’s economy as Philippine-listed companies have increased their reliance on cheap borrowed capital.

15 Jun 2023 - 6:39PM

Some Philippine firms projects funded by overseas loans may lead to losses that weaken the conglomerates and affect their banking business, according to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Felipe Medalla. Photo: AFP

United States

Macroscope | As US teeters on the edge of debt default, why are rating agencies silent?

All three major American agencies have neither changed their outlook nor altered their rating of the US, implying a near-zero probability of default – tantamount to a dereliction of duty.

24 May 2023 - 12:30AM

Pedestrians walk past a billboard showing the national debt in Washington on May 19. Photo: AFP

Banking & finance

Chinese banks gain in market value, shrugging off broader crisis: S&P survey

Chinese lenders largely shrugged off the recent banking crisis in developed markets, gaining in value to take the top five spots in a league table of Asia-Pacific banks ranked by market capitalisation.

8 Apr 2023 - 2:14AMvideocam

Banking & finance

Dividend payouts by Chinese firms hit record US$174 billion, S&P finds

The total payout by constituents of the CSI 300, which tracks the biggest 300 stocks in Shenzhen and Shanghai, was up 14 per cent last year, as Beijing encouraged companies to reward their shareholders.

6 Apr 2023 - 8:30AMvideocam

Business of climate change

Ratings agencies must overhaul processes to reflect climate risks, study says

The way Fitch, Moody’s and S&P Global have incorporated ESG factors into credit analysis has had no effect on their conventional credit assessments, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

14 Mar 2023 - 4:00PMvideocam

A screen shows typhoon Chanthu at the Quezon City Emergency Operations Center in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines, on September 10, 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE

Mergers & Acquisitions

Fosun International to sell stakes in four companies for US$975 million

Heavily indebted Fosun International has been selling some assets as it faced questions about its financial strength in recent months.

5 Jan 2023 - 8:33PM

Banking & finance

Macroscope | Too soon to say about US stock rally despite surprise earnings boost

Most third-quarter US earnings reports outdid expectations but serious headwinds are ahead given the strong dollar, China’s Covid-19 policy and Europe’s situation. Investor concern over inflation and higher interest rates will also put pressure on company valuations and stock prices.

4 Nov 2022 - 11:09PMvideocam

China property

Chinese developers face insolvency as investors lose patience, S&P warns

At least a fifth of rated Chinese property developers will end up becoming insolvent, putting as much as US$88 billion of their distressed bonds at risk, according to S&P Global Ratings.

18 Jul 2022 - 6:15PMvideocam

Exchanges and debt extensions have been the two most common ways for Chinese developers to resolve their bond default risks. Photo: EPA-EFE

Ukraine

Chinese agency lowers Ukraine rating in Russian invasion aftermath

China Chengxin says further downgrades could follow as repayment capacity falls.

9 Mar 2022 - 1:25PMvideocam

Firefighters tackle a blaze in a residential building damaged by shelling in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Saturday. Photo: Reuters

Macroscope

Macroscope | Interest rates are rising, but it isn’t all bad news for investors

History suggests that if investors take a long view, returns will be positive through the tightening cycle. Furthermore, inflation is likely to peak in the next few months, and the medium-term outlook for equity returns should be healthy.

24 Feb 2022 - 4:34AMvideocam

Stocks

Opinion | Why US biotech stocks are looking healthier after a tough year

Headwinds are starting to abate with a permanent FDA commissioner installed, uncertainty around drug-pricing reform set to ease and a cash-rich biopharma industry eyeing up biotech’s low valuations.

20 Feb 2022 - 9:30PMvideocam

China economy

Bad-debt manager China Huarong delays 2020 results past April deadline

China Huarong Asset Management had missed an earlier March 31 deadline to announce preliminary results, saying that its auditors needed more time.

25 Apr 2021 - 7:34PM

China Huarong is one of four state-owned entities set up by China in 1999 to help manage bad debt in the country’s banking system. Photo: China Daily via Reuters

Asean

The worst is yet to come for Asia’s emerging markets

Unlike in 2008, Asia has weaker balance sheets and a greater dependence on exports. With debt ratings set to slide and deglobalisation a risk, Asia must reassess its export-led economic model.

11 Oct 2020 - 3:30PMvideocam

The Standard and Poor’s building in New York. S&P Global Ratings, the agency with the most comprehensive sovereign coverage, has issued 23 downgrades in the six months starting in February. Photo: Reuters

China trade

It has been an extraordinary six months for markets. What’s next?

The year has been one where narrative finance, rather than command of economic or financial fundamentals, has guided asset prices. There is no reason the third quarter should be as extraordinary, but it would take a brave investor to bet on it being uneventful.

3 Jul 2020 - 3:51AMvideocam

Banking & finance

Will Asian Financial Crisis 2.0 hurt more than 1998?

Banks wrestle with moral hazard of lending to zombie companies amid coronavirus pandemic as more borrowers queue up for credit in toughest conditions since the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis.

15 Apr 2020 - 6:00PM

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