S&P lowers credit rating of BP, upgrades Shell
By Steve Goldstein
Last update: 11:12 a.m. EDT Sept. 1, 2008
LONDON (MarketWatch) — Standard & Poor’s on Monday lowered the credit rating of BP to AA from AA+ while it upgraded rival Royal Dutch Shell. On BP, it cited the company’s U.S. downstream weakness; its more aggressive financial policies; and the turbulence around 50% held Russia venture TNK-BP.
The rating agency upgraded Shell to AA+ from AA on confirmed strength and “reduced lumpiness” in upstream reserve replacement, the progress achieved in major projects, continuing strong upstream and downstream profit generation and sustained moderation in growth of shareholder distributions.