By Natali Schwab
FRANKFURT--German mailing company Deutsche Post AG (DPW.XE) and
cement maker HeidelbergCement AG (HEI.XE) have cancelled their
contracts with ratings agency Standard & Poor's, the companies
said.
HeidelbergCement will in the future still be rated by the two
other industry giants Moody's and Fitch Ratings, but Thursday it
declined to comment on the reason for its decision to drop
S&P.
Just before the announcement, S&P affirmed the company's BB
long-term and B short-term corporate credit ratings.
Wednesday, Deutsche Post dropped S&P, saying the agency's
fees had become too high. Instead, the company commissioned Moody's
to rate it in addition to Fitch. Fitch gave Deutsche Post a BBB+
rating with stable outlook, the same rating S&P had previously
given the company.
According to a report by German news magazine Focus, several
German DAX companies protested about S&P's fees in April.
Write to Natali Schwab at natali.schwab@dowjones.com
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