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        T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                           E U R O P E

            Friday, August 3, 2018, Vol. 19, No. 153


                            Headlines


F I N L A N D

SCF RAHOITUSPALVELUT I: Fitch Affirms 'BB+sf' Cl. E Notes Rating


F R A N C E

LSF10 IMPALA: Moody's Affirms B1 CFR, Outlook Stable


G E R M A N Y

P&R CONTAINER: Munich Court Starts Insolvency Proceedings
PLATIN 1425: S&P Affirms 'B' Issuer Credit Rating, Outlook Stable


G R E E C E

HELLENIC TELECOMS: S&P Raises ICR to 'BB+', Outlook Positive


I T A L Y

SESTANTE FINANCE 2: S&P Affirms CCC+ (sf) Rating on Cl. C2 Notes
TELECOM ITALIA: S&P Affirms 'BB+/B' Issuer Credit Ratings


L U X E M B O U R G

SWISSPORT GROUP: S&P Alters Outlook to Stable & Affirms 'B-' ICR


M O N T E N E G R O

KOMBINAT ALUMINIJUMA: CEAC Refuses to Pay EUR1.5MM in Court Fees


N O R W A Y

KONGSBERG AUTOMOTIVE: S&P Assigns 'B+' ICR, Outlook Stable


P O L A N D

GETBACK SA: Plans to Commence Rehabilitation Proceedings


R U S S I A

INTERREGIONAL DISTRIBUTION: S&P Affirms 'BB/B' ICRs
MKB-LEASING: S&P Affirms 'B-/B' ICRs & Revises Outlook to Neg.
MOSCOW UNITED: S&P Affirms BB ICR, Outlook Stable
REGION INVESTMENT: S&P Affirms 'B-/B' ICRs, Outlook Negative


U N I T E D   K I N G D O M

HOUSE OF FRASER: C.banner International Abandons Rescue Plan
MERGERMARKET MIDCO 2: S&P Alters Outlook to Neg. & Affirms B ICR
RANGERS FOOTBALL: One Month-Deadline Set to Agree on Case
TRITON SOLAR: Moody's Assigns B3 CFR, Outlook Stable


U Z B E K I S T A N

HALK BANK: S&P Raises ICR to 'B+' on Substantial Capital Support
NATIONAL BANK OF UZBEKISTAN: S&P Affirms B+/B ICR, Outlook Stable


X X X X X X X X

* BOOK REVIEW: Oil Business in Latin America: The Early Years


                            *********



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F I N L A N D
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SCF RAHOITUSPALVELUT I: Fitch Affirms 'BB+sf' Cl. E Notes Rating
----------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed SCF Rahoituspalvelut I DAC's (SCF I
DAC) class A, B, C, D and E notes, and upgraded SCF
Rahoituspalvelut II DAC's (SCF II DAC) class B notes.

SCF I DAC and SCF II DAC are securitisations of auto loan
receivables originated to Finnish individuals and companies by
Santander Consumer Finance Oy (SCF Oy, the seller), a 100%
subsidiary of Norway-based Santander Consumer Bank AS (SCB; A-
/Stable/F2).

In its cash flow modelling for SCF I DAC, Fitch adjusted the
evenly- and back-loaded default timing vectors compared to those
stated in its Consumer ABS Rating Criteria for portfolios with a
weighted-average life of 18 months. The unadjusted evenly- and
back-loaded distributions end at month 36 and 42 respectively,
whereas the maximum remaining term of the portfolio is 33 months.
As such, Fitch deemed it appropriate to shorten the distributions
to end at month 30. The adjusted evenly-distributed curve assumes
linear defaults over 30 periods; the back-loaded curve assumes
60% of total defaults are concentrated in the final 12 months of
the distribution. Fitch notes that these adjustments do not drive
the ratings, because the front-loaded distribution is the driving
scenario in its modelling of the transaction.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Strong Credit Performance

The performance of the two transactions has been very strong.
Cumulative defaults in SCF I DAC stand at 0.9%, and the default
curve has started to flatten out as the transaction enters its
tail. Fitch has reduced its lifetime defaults base case for SCF I
DAC to 1.1% from 1.3%. Cumulative defaults in SCF II DAC are
slightly lower at 0.7%, reflecting the one year difference in
seasoning between the two transactions. Fitch has maintained is
lifetime defaults base case for SCF II DAC at 1.5%.

Delinquencies have also remained low in both deals. Loans which
are 30+ days past due account for 1.8% and 1.5% of the non-
defaulted collateral balances in SCF I DAC and SCF II DAC
respectively, while 90+ delinquencies stand at 0.3% for both
deals. Fitch views the 90+ delinquency rate as a better indicator
of credit performance in these transactions. Borrowers pay via
invoice in Finland, meaning that the 30+ delinquency rate is
likely skewed by early delinquency buckets, which borrowers may
fall into by mistake. Fitch considers the overall level of
delinquencies in the transactions to be consistent with its
lifetime default base cases, given the six-month default
definition.

High Recoveries

The recoveries achieved by SCF Oy are amongst the highest in
European auto ABS transactions. This is reflected in the 70%
recoveries base case set for both transactions. Cumulative
recoveries in SCF DAC I have reached its base case assumption,
currently standing at 71.9%. In SCF II DAC, cumulative recoveries
are at 60.9%, which is consistent with its expectations given the
anticipated recovery timing.

Liquidity Coverage

The transactions both feature an amortising liquidity reserve,
which provides liquidity coverage for the class A and B notes.
However, the reserve is not available to pay interest on the
class C notes and below, meaning that timely payment of interest
may not be achieved in a payment interruption scenario. As such,
Fitch has capped the ratings of the class C to E notes at 'A+sf'.

The liquidity reserves also provide credit enhancement. The
reserves amortise on each payment date until they reach their
floor amounts, and may be fully released when certain conditions
are met. Released amounts flow through the combined waterfall,
making them available to amortise the notes to target amounts.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Rating sensitivities of SCF I DAC

Expected impact upon the note rating of increased defaults (class
A/B/C/D/E):

Current ratings: 'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Increase base case defaults by 50%:
'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Expected impact upon the note rating of reduced recoveries (class
A/B/C/D/E):

Current ratings: 'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Reduce base case recovery by 50%:
'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Expected impact upon the note rating of increased defaults and
decreased recoveries (class A/B/C/D/E):

Current ratings: 'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Increase default base case by 50%; reduce recovery base case by
50%: 'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Rating sensitivities of SCF II DAC

Expected impact upon the note rating of increased defaults (class
A/B/C/D/E):

Current ratings: 'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Increase base case defaults by 50%:
'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Expected impact upon the note rating of reduced recoveries (class
A/B/C/D/E):

Current ratings: 'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Reduce base case recovery by 50%:
'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Expected impact upon the note rating of increased defaults and
decreased recoveries (class A/B/C/D/E):

Current ratings: 'AAAsf'/'AAAsf'/'A+sf'/'A+sf'/'BB+sf'

Increase default base case by 50%; reduce recovery base case by
50%: 'AAAsf'/'AA+sf'/'A+sf'/'A-sf'/'BBsf'

USE OF THIRD-PARTY DUE DILIGENCE PURSUANT TO RULE 17G-10

Form ABS Due Diligence-15E was not provided to, or reviewed by,
Fitch in relation to this rating action.

DATA ADEQUACY

Fitch has checked the consistency and plausibility of the
information it has received about the performance of the asset
pools and the transactions. There were no findings that affected
the rating analysis. Fitch has not reviewed the results of any
third party assessment of the asset portfolio information or
conducted a review of origination files as part of its ongoing
monitoring.

Prior to the transactions closing, Fitch reviewed the results of
a third party assessment conducted on the asset portfolio
information and concluded that there were no findings that
affected the rating analysis.

Prior to the transactions closing, Fitch conducted a review of a
small targeted sample of the originator's origination files and
found the information contained in the reviewed files to be
adequately consistent with the originator's policies and
practices and the other information provided to the agency about
the asset portfolio.

Overall, Fitch's assessment of the information relied upon for
the agency's rating analysis according to its applicable rating
methodologies indicates that it is adequately reliable.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

The information here was used in the analysis.

  - Monthly investor reports provided by SCF Oy up to June 2018

  - Loan-by-loan data with a cut-off of May 2018, downloaded from
European Data Warehouse (Edwin)

MODELS

The EMEA Cash Flow Model was used in the analysis. Click on the
link for a description of the model.

EMEA Cash Flow Model.

Fitch has taken the following rating actions:

SCF Rahoituspalvelut I DAC

EUR13.1 million class A notes: affirmed at 'AAAsf'; Stable
Outlook

EUR27.2 million class B notes: affirmed at 'AAAsf'; Stable
Outlook

EUR5.8 million class C notes: affirmed at 'A+sf'; Stable Outlook

EUR3.8 million class D notes: affirmed at 'A+sf'; Stable Outlook

EUR6.6 million class E notes: affirmed at 'BB+sf'; Stable Outlook

SCF Rahoituspalvelut II DAC

EUR174.1 million class A: affirmed at 'AAAsf'; Stable Outlook

EUR27.3 million class B: upgraded to 'AAAsf' from 'AA+sf'; Stable
Outlook

EUR9.1 million class C: affirmed at 'A+sf'; Stable Outlook

EUR6.1 million class D: affirmed to 'A+sf'; Stable Outlook

EUR10.3 million class E: affirmed at 'BB+sf'; Stable Outlook


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LSF10 IMPALA: Moody's Affirms B1 CFR, Outlook Stable
----------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service has affirmed LSF10 Impala Investments
S.a.r.l.'s Corporate Family rating and Probability of Default
rating at B1 and B1-PD respectively. Concurrently Moody's has
affirmed the B1 instrument ratings assigned to the amended EUR480
million senior secured 1st lien term loan B and senior secured
1st lien revolving credit facility. The agency has assigned a B3
rating to EUR100 million of senior secured 2nd lien term loan B.
The outlook is stable.

RATINGS RATIONALE

The affirmation of the B1 Corporate family rating reflects the
unchanged debt quantum for LSF10 Impala Investments S.a.r.l.
following the company's decision to amend the debt structure
intended to support the acquisition of the company by funds
advised by Lonestar. Impala has decided to switch from a EUR580
million term loan B structure to a financing arrangement
including both a EUR480 million senior secured first lien term
loan B and a EUR100 million senior secured 2nd lien term loan B.
Despite the presence of a EUR100 million senior secured 2nd lien,
which offers loss absorption to 1st lien lenders, the senior
secured 1st lien term loan B and the senior secured 1st lien
revolver are rated in line with the corporate family rating. The
size of the senior secured 2nd lien debt instrument is too small
to lead to an up notching of the 1st lien instrument ratings
above the corporate family rating. As part of the process Impala
will also pay higher margins on the loans resulting in an
increase of the annual interest charge of slightly more than EUR7
million. Despite this increase Impala's free cash flow generation
will remain robust and the group's deleveraging path will only be
modestly altered. However this reduces somewhat the room for
manoeuver and the tolerance for underperformance.

Impala's B1 CFR is supported by (i) the group's very strong and
historically stable market position in the consolidated French
roofing market, (ii) its strong competitive position in the
French roofing market due to the capital intensity of the
business model, the need to have access to high quality but
scarce clay reserves close to production plants, the customer
stickiness and the low value to weight ratio, which requires a
dense network and protects market shares of incumbents, (iii) the
company's very high profitability compared to competitors, which
is supported by structural rather than cyclical factors (high
quality clay reserves, geographical footprint in the French
market, superior brand, larger share of higher margin accessories
and lower cost basis partly due to higher automation of
production process.), (iv) a high exposure to more resilient
renovation activities and the depressed level of renovation
activity in the French roofing market, which offers good recovery
prospects over the next 2-3 years, and (v) the company's strong
cash flow generation supported by the high operating margins and
a good cash conversion rate.

Impala's rating is however constrained by (i) the concentrated
geographical profile of the company with around 90% of turnover
being generated in the French domestic market, (ii) the company's
small size in the context of the building materials industry,
which is a cyclical and capital intensive industry, where scale
is an important success factor notwithstanding that Impala has
scale in the French market, (iii) some degree of substitution in
the new construction segment from clay tiles to other roofing
materials (as a result of a change in the housing mix), which
could constrain long term growth prospects and (iv) the issuer's
relatively high leverage at inception with a pro-forma Moody's
adjusted Debt/EBITDA of around 5.0x based on FYE2017 numbers.

RATIONALE FOR THE STABLE OUTLOOK

The stable outlook reflects Moody's expectations that Impala will
maintain a Moody's adjusted leverage as measured by debt/EBITDA
not exceeding sustainably 5.0x over time and maintain its strong
operating profitability.

LIQUIDITY

Impala's pro-forma liquidity is satisfactory. Impala will have
EUR5 million of cash on balance sheet and access to an undrawn
EUR90 million revolving credit facility at closing of the
transaction. Alongside the group's strong operating cash flow
generation (pre-WC) this should be sufficient to cover all cash
needs of the group over the next 12 to 18 months. Cash needs
mainly include maintenance capital expenditures of around EUR25
million, modest growth capex for Adjacencies of EUR1-2 million,
an intra-year working capital swing of around EUR10-12 million
and an assumed minimum cash level to run day to day operations of
around 3% of revenues.

Its liquidity assessment also takes into account the covenant
lite structure of the bank debt with a springing covenant on the
revolving credit facility with a test level with ample headroom
(6.64x net leverage versus 3.7x at inception) to be only tested
if the revolver is drawn more than 40%.

STRUCTURAL CONSIDERATIONS

The proposed debt will be borrowed by LSF10 Impala Investments
S.a.r.l., the top company of the restricted group. The funds will
be downstreamed to LSF10 Impala BidCo, the entity which will
acquire the Imerys assets. The senior secured 1st lien debt will
be secured by share pledges over the shares of LSF10 Impala
Investments S.a.r.l. and operating subsidiaries accounting for at
least 80% of group consolidated EBITDA. The senior secured 2nd
lien debt will have access to the same security package as 1st
lien lenders but their claim will be junior to 1st lien lenders.
LSF10 Impala Investments S.a.r.l. and operating subsidiaries will
guarantee both the 1st lien and 2nd lien debt.

Both the senior secured 1st lien term loan B and the revolving
credit facility will rank pari passu.

Moody's assumes a standard recovery rate of 50%, which reflects
both the presence of a 2nd lien debt instrument in the capital
structure and the covenant lite nature of the loan documentation
with only one springing covenant with material headroom, which
will be only tested if the utilization exceeds 40%.

WHAT COULD CHANGE THE RATING UP / DOWN

Positive pressure would build on the rating if Debt/EBITDA would
drop sustainably below 4.0x and FCF/debt would increase to double
digit in percentage terms. A higher rating would also require the
maintenance of stable operating margins at current levels.

Conversely negative pressure on the rating would arise if
Debt/EBITDA would increase sustainably above 5.0x, operating
margins would decline steeply and FCF generation would turn
negative, leading to a deterioration of Impala's liquidity
profile.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Building
Materials Industry published in January 2017.

CORPORATE PROFILE

Headquartered in Dardilly, France, Impala is the leading provider
of clay roof tiles in France. Impala operates two divisions, its
legacy business of premium clay roof tiles (91% of revenues) and
Adjacencies (9% of revenues). Impala generated revenues of
EUR300m in 2017 and company adjusted EBITDA of EUR129 million
(margin: 43%).

During the last 3 years Impala bought smaller solar, roof
components and sealing solutions businesses (Adjacencies segment)
to realize cross selling opportunities and achieve growth in a
declining French renovation market. Impala's current owner,
Imerys S.A., agreed to sell the company to a fund owned by Lone
Star . The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter
of 2018.


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P&R CONTAINER: Munich Court Starts Insolvency Proceedings
---------------------------------------------------------
Iain Rogers at Bloomberg News reports that the Munich court has
opened insolvency proceedings for P&R Container.

According to Bloomberg, insolvency administrators Michael Jaffe
and Philip Heinke said in an emailed statement that the start of
insolvency proceedings allows around 54,000 investors to register
claims by the Sept. 14 deadline.

Initial investigation shows contracts agreed over many years with
investors for containers that never existed, Bloomberg discloses.

Mr. Jaffe warns the billions of euros of damage caused can only
be partially offset, Bloomberg relates.


PLATIN 1425: S&P Affirms 'B' Issuer Credit Rating, Outlook Stable
-----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings said that it affirmed its 'B' issuer credit
rating on Platin 1425. GmbH (Platin), a holding company of German
measuring technology firm, Schenck Process. The outlook remains
stable.

S&P said, "At the same time, we affirmed our 'B' issue rating on
the EUR425 million senior secured notes and on the new EUR100
million senior secured notes, issued by Platin 1426. GmbH. The
recovery rating on these senior secured notes is '4', indicating
our expectation of average recovery (rounded estimate: 30%) in
the event of payment default.

"The affirmation of the ratings reflects our expectation that
Platin's credit metrics will remain in line with our 'B' ratings
after the completion of the acquisition of Raymond Bartlett Snow
(RBS) -- namely, debt to EBITDA below 6.0x and a funds from
operations (FFO) cash interest coverage ratio higher than 2.5x.

RBS is a leading global provider of pulverizing and thermal
processing equipment, servicing a broad range of customers with
particular focus on the U.S. In 2017, RBS generated more than
EUR40 million in revenues, with the U.S. accounting for about 60%
of revenue. With the acquisition of RBS, the group is increasing
its scale and extending its existing product offering, enabling
greater integration in the end customer value chain. RBS, like
Schenck Process, has a high share of aftermarket components
(about two-thirds of its revenue), and it benefits from the
installed base, with a relatively moderate dependency on new
equipment. Furthermore, RBS has a notable end-market and
geographic overlap, providing potential to create revenue and
cost synergies.

Platin is issuing EUR100 million senior secured notes, ranking
pari passu, to its existing EUR425 million senior secured notes
to fund the acquisition and related costs, in addition to using a
low-single-digit million euro cash amount. With the increased
debt levels, our adjusted debt-to-EBITDA ratio will be below 6.0x
in 2018 before declining toward 5.5x in 2019, with FFO cash
interest coverage remaining above 2.5x in 2018 and 2019.

With revenues of EUR540 million in 2017, Schenck Process is one
of the leading providers of measuring technology based in
Germany. It offers weighing, feeding, screening, and automation
solutions for various industries globally, including mining,
cement, chemical, metals, and food. Schenck Process maintains a
diversified customer base and good geographic diversification of
both production facilities and sales generation.

However, S&P views both Schenck Process and RBS as niche players,
exposed to highly cyclical markets such as the metals and mining
industry, as well as the fragmentation of the industry in which
Schenck operates. This creates a variety of competitors in each
of Schenck Process' divisions, leading to low price-setting
power. Additionally, given the relatively small size of RBS, S&P
continues to view that the group has limited scale and scope
compared with other companies in the capital goods sector.

With the latest recovery in commodity prices, the operating
environment for its clients in the minerals and metals segment
has improved. Although the company's profitability is driven by
industry utilization rates rather than capital expenditure
(capex) cycles, S&P expects that clients will remain cautious
about capex, focusing on existing projects and limiting capex on
new projects.

S&P said, "We expect that the group will continue to strengthen
its aftermarket business, as demonstrated by the acquisition of
RBS, and continue to focus on stable market segments, which
should continue to add stability to earnings and cash flow. The
company's high share of aftermarket sales and EBITDA has
historically translated into a favorable degree of resilience to
cyclical downturns. During the steep economic downturn of 2008-
2009, Schenck Process experienced a lower peak-to-trough decline
in sales and in margins than the industry average. Over the past
two years, Schenck Process has undertaken considerable
restructuring efforts and the related expenses have burdened the
generation of S&P Global Ratings-adjusted EBITDA. Cost-efficiency
initiatives included a meaningful headcount reduction, as well as
closing low-margin and noncore businesses. We expect these
measures will have a positive impact on margins from 2017, and we
estimate that the adjusted EBITDA margin recovered to more than
14% in 2017 and will further strengthen to about 15.5% in 2018,
compared with 7% in 2016.

"That said, the group's private-equity ownership structure by a
financial sponsor constrains our financial risk profile
assessment. We expect that Schenck Process' fully adjusted debt-
to-EBITDA ratio will be below 6x in 2018 and our expectation that
it will reduce toward 5.5x from 2019. We expect Schenck will
continue to generate positive free operating cash flow (FOCF)
under our base case and maintain healthy cash interest-coverage
ratios of about 3x in 2018 and 2019, with moderate volatility in
its operating cash flow, all of which supports the company's
financial risk profile."

In S&P's base-case scenario for 2018 to 2019, it assumes:

-- GDP growth in the eurozone of 2.3% in 2018 and 1.9% in 2019,
    and in North America of 2.8% in 2018 and 2.6% in 2019.

-- Revenue growth of more than 15% in 2018 and about 5% in 2019,
    thanks to the acquisition of RBS but also due to the mild
    recovery in the commodities industry; rising demand from
    food, chemicals, and plastics end-markets; an increase in the
    installed base; and expected growth in the after-market
    segment.

-- An adjusted EBITDA margin of about 15.5% in 2018, improving
    to 16% in 2019 on the back of the positive impact from
    completed reorganization measures and increased revenues.

-- Capex of about EUR15 million in 2018, reducing to about EUR13
    million in 2019. No dividend payments.

Based on these assumptions, we expect:

-- Funds from operations (FFO) to debt of about 9%-10% in 2018
    to 2019.

-- Debt to EBITDA of below 6x in 2018, improving toward 5.5x in
    2019.

-- Positive FOCF of EUR30 million-EUR35 million.

-- FFO cash interest coverage of about 3.0x in 2018 and 2019.

S&P said, "We estimate adjusted debt at year-end 2018 will be
about EUR575 million, including reported financial debt of about
EUR530 million, our estimate for operating leases of about EUR35
million, and pension liabilities of about EUR10 million.

"We assess the financial covenant headroom as ample under its
springing covenant. The financial covenant will be only tested if
the revolving credit facility is drawn by more than 40%.
The stable outlook balances our expectation of increased leverage
against our past expectations of a strengthening of the group's
overall business offering. We expect that, alongside the
stabilizing of its end-markets and sizable aftermarket, the group
will generate FFO cash interest coverage above 2.5x and maintain
debt to EBITDA below 6.0x, continue gradual deleveraging, and
strengthen its key credit ratios. Furthermore, we expect the
group will increase EBITDA generation year on year without
significant restructuring charges over the next three years.

"We would likely lower the rating if we perceived a weakening of
Schenck's business risk profile or deterioration of the group's
operational and financial performance, leading to lower margins,
higher volatility of earnings, and flagging cash flow generation.
We would consider a negative rating action if debt to EBITDA
seemed likely to reach more than 6.0x or FFO cash interest
coverage fell below 2.5x. Such a development could also arise
from a lack of EBITDA contribution from the expected investments
and acquisitions due to delays or significant charges to
integrate the operations.

"In our view, prospects for an upgrade are remote because
headroom under the current rating level is limited. We could
consider raising the rating if Schenck's operating performance
and credit metrics materially strengthened and were on a clear
trend to be in line with our aggressive financial risk profile
category -- for example, debt to EBITDA below 5x and FFO to debt
above 15%. This would hinge on our opinion that a more
conservative financial policy would sustain such improvement."


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HELLENIC TELECOMS: S&P Raises ICR to 'BB+', Outlook Positive
------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings raised its long-term issuer credit rating on
Greek integrated telecommunications operator Hellenic
Telecommunications Organization S.A. (OTE) to 'BB+' from 'BB'.
The outlook is positive. S&P affirmed its 'B' short-term issuer
credit rating on OTE.

S&P sais, "At the same time, we raised to 'BB+' from 'BB' our
issue ratings on the senior unsecured debt issued by OTE's wholly
owned financing vehicle, OTE PLC. The recovery rating on the
senior unsecured debt is unchanged at '3' (recovery prospects:
65%), capped by the unsecured nature of the debt.

"The upgrade follows our upward revision of Greece's country
risk, linked to steps the authorities have taken to ease (albeit
not entirely abolish) capital controls, and to improving economic
prospects and policy predictability. As OTE generates more than
70% of its revenues and more than 80% of its EBITDA in Greece,
this materially affects our assessment of its business risk and
stand-alone credit quality. In our view, improving economic
prospects, including real GDP growth forecast at 2.0%-2.5% over
the next couple of years and a forecast decline in unemployment
to less than 20% by 2019 (21.5% in 2017), should bolster consumer
spending in the Greek market."

For OTE this means customers can spend more on mobile data,
upgrading broadband connections to fiber, and pay-TV products. At
the same time, the easing of capital controls should simplify the
process of transferring cash for payments out of Greece,
including cash transfers for debt service, which improves our
overall view of OTE's credit quality. The strengthening economic
environment has already made a mark on OTE's recent performance
in Greece; its mobile, broadband, and TV subscriber numbers have
all increased (by 4.1%, 8.9%, and 4.5% year-on-year in Q1 2018),
resulting in organic growth in fixed retail and mobile service
revenues (excluding the impact of IFRS 15).

OTE's recent successful issuance of EUR400 million senior
unsecured notes bolsters its liquidity (EUR766 million cash and
short-term investments as of March 31, 2018) and should improve
its ability to tackle upcoming debt maturities (EUR637 million up
to end-2019), including in a distressed scenario following a
sovereign default. S&P said, "We also consider that OTE's solid
balance sheet and generally resilient free cash flow generation--
seen during the sovereign debt crisis in 2011-2012--would protect
the company in a sovereign default scenario. We therefore rate
OTE three notches above the sovereign."

S&P said, "Our assessment of OTE's stand-alone credit profile
(SACP) is supported by its leading market positions in mobile and
fixed-line services in Greece (51% mobile service revenue and 47%
broadband subscriber market share in Q1 2018, according to OTE);
solid adjusted EBITDA margins of about 35%; and a conservative
balance sheet with adjusted debt to EBITDA of about 1.5x. Our
assessment is somewhat constrained by relatively weak free cash
flow to debt forecast at about 15% in 2018, reflecting its
significant investments in new generation networks and our view
of its cash flow volatility as potentially still higher than for
peers due to OTE's exposure to the recovering, albeit still weak,
economy in Greece. We also expect that OTE may loosen its
conservative financial policy relating to dividends, liquidity,
and leverage targets over the medium term if the macroeconomic
and policy environment continues to improve. We think OTE's
decision in early 2018 to adopt a shareholder remuneration policy
that targets paying out the group's entire free cash flow was a
first step. The policy led OTE to more than double its dividend
payment for 2017 versus 2016, and additionally introduce a EUR90
million share-repurchase program for 2018.

"The rating also reflects our view of OTE's strategic importance
to its biggest shareholder, Deutsche Telekom (DT), and for DT's
long-term strategy as a pan-European telecom carrier. We believe
DT is unlikely to sell OTE in the near term, and that DT could
extend some support to OTE if needed, including because of stress
related to a sovereign crisis.

"The positive outlook on OTE mirrors our positive outlook on
Greece and reflects that, over the next 12 months, we could raise
our ratings on the company following a potential upgrade of
Greece.

"We could raise the rating on OTE by one notch if we raise our
rating on Greece to 'BB-'.

"We could revise the outlook to stable following a similar rating
action on the sovereign.

"Although unlikely, we could consider a downgrade if OTE's
resilience to sovereign stress weakened, limiting its ability to
be rated higher than Greece under a distressed scenario. This
could result from a combination of weaker operating performance
and higher shareholder returns that deplete part of its cash
buffers, potentially compounded by our view that the company's
strategic importance to DT had weakened, for example if DT
appears likely to sell OTE in the near term."


=========
I T A L Y
=========


SESTANTE FINANCE 2: S&P Affirms CCC+ (sf) Rating on Cl. C2 Notes
----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings raised its credit rating on Sestante Finance
S.r.l. series 2's class B notes. At the same time, S&P has
affirmed its ratings on the class A, C1, and C2 notes.

S&P said, "The rating actions follow our credit and cash flow
analysis of the most recent transaction information that we have
received as of the April 2018 payment date. We have applied our
European residential loans criteria and our structured finance
ratings above the sovereign (RAS) criteria."

Since May 2017, available credit enhancement--considering
performing collateral only--has increased for all classes of
notes.

  Class         Available credit
                 enhancement (%)

  A                        35.29
  B                        10.36
  C1                      (0.95)

The reserve fund has not been replenished since its depletion in
October 2009.

Severe delinquencies of more than 90 days, at 5.6%, are on
average higher for this transaction than our Italian residential
mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) index. Defaults are defined as
mortgage loans in arrears for more than 12 months in this
transaction. Cumulative defaults, at 11%, are also higher than in
other Italian RMBS transactions that we rate. Prepayment levels
remain low and the transaction is unlikely to pay down
significantly in the near term, in S&P's opinion.

After applying S&P's European residential loans criteria to this
transaction, its credit analysis results show that, since January
2017, both the weighted-average foreclosure frequency (WAFF) and
the weighted-average loss severity (WALS) have decreased at all
rating levels.

  Rating level    WAFF (%)    WALS (%)

  AAA                26.83       11.46
  AA                 20.90        9.01
  A                  15.70        4.74
  BBB                12.88        2.66
  BB                 10.06        2.00
  B                   7.25        2.00

The decrease in the WAFF is mainly due to a slight decrease in
arrears, while the WALS decrease is mainly due to the application
of our updated market value decline assumptions. The overall
effect is a decrease in the required credit coverage at all
rating levels.

S&P said, "The swap documents do not contain downgrade provisions
in line with our current counterparty criteria. Consequently, if
we give benefit to the swap, our criteria cap our ratings on the
notes at the issuer credit rating (ICR) on the swap counterparty
plus one notch, that is 'A'.

"Taking into account the results of our credit and cash flow
analysis, we consider that the available credit enhancement for
the class A notes could be enough to support a higher rating than
the currently assigned rating even without the benefit of the
swap. However, the application of our RAS criteria caps our
rating on the class A notes at four notches above our long-term
sovereign rating on Italy (unsolicited; BBB/Stable/A-2). We have
therefore affirmed our 'A + (sf)' rating on this class of notes.

"Our credit and cash flow analysis indicates that the class B
notes can achieve a higher rating than that currently assigned
due to the increased credit enhancement and improved performance
since our previous review but only if we give benefit to the
swap. Therefore, our current counterparty criteria cap the
maximum rating achievable for the class B notes at the ICR on the
swap counterparty plus one notch. We have therefore raised to 'A
(sf)' from 'BBB (sf)' our rating on the class B notes.

"Payment on the class C1 notes is very dependent on recoveries
and this class of notes can achieve a higher rating only if we
assume some recoveries on defaulted assets. Following the
application of our criteria for assigning 'CCC' category ratings,
we believe that the issuer will have enough available funds to
pay timely interest and ultimate principal under a steady-state
scenario without favorable conditions. We have therefore affirmed
our 'B- (sf)' rating on the class C1 notes.

"The class C2 notes rely on excess spread, which hasn't been
sufficient to cure the principal deficiency ledger. Consequently,
this class of notes is vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent
upon favorable economic and financial conditions. That said,
given the improved transaction performance and the macroeconomic
environment, we have affirmed our 'CCC+ (sf)' rating on the class
C2 notes in line with our criteria for assigning 'CCC' category
ratings.

"In our opinion, the outlook for the Italian residential mortgage
and real estate market is not benign and we have therefore
increased our expected 'B' foreclosure frequency assumption to
2.55% from 1.50%, when we apply our European residential loans
criteria, to reflect this view."

Sestante Finance series 2 is an Italian RMBS transaction, which
closed in December 2004. It is backed by a pool of residential
mortgage loans originated by Meliorbanca SpA.

  RATINGS LIST
  Class           Rating
              To           From

  Sestante Finance S.r.l. EUR653.453 Million Asset-Backed
  Floating-Rate Notes Series 2

  Rating Raised

  B           A (sf)       BBB (sf)

  Ratings Affirmed

  A           A+ (sf)
  C1          B- (sf)
  C2          CCC+ (sf)


TELECOM ITALIA: S&P Affirms 'BB+/B' Issuer Credit Ratings
---------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'BB+/B' long- and short-term
issuer credit ratings on Italy-based telecom company Telecom
Italia SpA. The outlook is positive.

S&P said, "At the same time, we affirmed the 'BB+' senior
unsecured debt rating, with a recovery rating of '3' (rounded
estimate 55%).

"The affirmation follows Telecom Italia's second-quarter
reporting. Across its segments, we think that Telecom Italia is
well positioned to maintain stable operations, and deleveraging
through its efficiency program despite challenges from mobile
competition in Italy and a difficult FX environment in Brazil.

"Domestic wireless subscribers (subs) were up 1.9% quarter on
quarter. While we expected M2M subs would be up, encouragingly,
human subs were also up 0.5%. This compares favorably with market
peers like Vodafone (VOD) and WindTre who are experiencing higher
net churn. We continue to view Telecom Italia's customer base as
comparatively less vulnerable to new arrival Iliad because of its
premium orientation, its converged offering, and so far, a
successful market segmentation with its low-cost Kena brand.

"With only a month of Iliad's entry in second-quarter numbers, we
haven't seen its full impact, and we note that Iliad announced it
rapidly reached 1 million customers in its first 50 days. We
think Telecom Italia's human mobile customers will fall in the
second half. This should amplify the mix effect of more rapid
growth in low-priced M2M subs, as well as competitive price
pressure, leading to a further ARPU (average revenue per user)
decline: we think it could fall to or below EUR11.50/mo from
EUR12.5 in 2017 and EUR11.8 in the second quarter."

Domestic fixed has performed well with broadband, and in
particular, ultra broadband customer growth leading to ARPU gains
and offsetting decline in traditional voice line customers.
Telecom Italia could face elevated line loss numbers through the
remainder of 2018 on repricing moves to recover from the 28-day
billing cycle reversal, but S&P expects an improving customer mix
at stable to slightly positive growth in 2018 and 2019 will
balance these factors out.

S&P said, "For TIM Brazil, we expect continued strong organic
performance of 6%-7% will be more than offset by FX under our
macro forecast for a depreciation to Brazilian real (R$)4.2/euro
in 2018 and R$4.56 in 2019.

"We take a positive view of Telecom Italia's solid execution of
its efficiency plan, which has reduced addressable operating
expenses by about 1.5% from second-quarter 2017, and capex by
over 25%. We expect that continued solid execution of the plan
should result in an additional increase in EBITDA margins in both
Italy and Brazil, as well as positive and growing free cash flow
generation. These results should enable Telecom Italia to reduce
its S&P Global Ratings-adjusted leverage sustainably below 3.3x
as soon as 2018.

"Our assessment of Telecom Italia's business profile continues to
benefit from its leading fixed-line position, with a broadband
market share in Italy of about 46% as of December 2017 (Agcom)
and the added benefits of providing wholesale access to other
fixed-line carriers. Additionally, Telecom Italia benefits from a
solid position in the Italian mobile market as one of the three
mobile network operators (about 31% customer market share as of
December 2017 according to Agcom) and, in our view, benefits from
the unique position of being the only telecom operator in Italy
able to provide convergent fixed and mobile services on its own
network. Telecom Italia's business profile also benefits from
high EBITDA margins in Italy, and geographic diversity in the
Brazilian market."

These strengths are partly offset by fierce mobile competition in
Italy, compounded by Iliad's entry and Italy being predominantly
pre-paid, resulting in limited switching costs and higher-than-
average churn (annual churn historically at 23%-24%). In fixed,
the Italian broadband market is still under-penetrated, and TI
faces ongoing cannibalization issues between and within its
fixed-line and mobile segments. In addition, fiber network
overlap with Open Fibre could lead to fierce pricing competition
and gradual losses of wholesale revenues. Telecom Italia has also
experienced a tough regulatory environment in Italy, and the
challenging economic and political environment in Brazil.

The rating is currently constrained by the relatively high
leverage and track record of limited cash flow generation
compared with peers, such as KPN or Telekom Austria, though S&P
expects these to both improve over the next 12 months.

In S&P's base-case scenario, it assumes:

-- Revenue decline of 2%-3% in 2018, and flat to 1% down in 2019
    reflecting 1) a mid-single-digit mobile decline moderating to
    low-single-digit in 2019, offset by; 2) flat to slightly
    positive fixed revenue growth, and; 3) organic growth of
    6%-7% in Brazil, combined with the negative effect of foreign
    currency movements in 2018 and 2019 of about 14% and 8%,
    respectively.

-- Domestic adjusted EBITDA margins improving to 46%-47% in 2018
    and 2019 thanks to the positive impact of the efficiency
    plan, from about 40% in 2017, which was weighed down by one-
    off exceptionals.

-- Excluding spectrum renewal costs, capital expenditure (capex)
    falling sharply to EUR3.8 billion-EUR3.9 billion in 2018 and
    2019 (from EUR5 billion in 2017) as a result of the
    efficiency plan and decline in 4G and FTTC investments.

-- No dividends assumed.

Based on these assumptions, S&P arrives at the following adjusted
credit measures in 2017-2018:

-- Debt to EBITDA of about 3.2x-3.3x in 2018, and about 3.1x in
    2019, compared with 3.8x in 2017 on one-off costs that
    depressed EBITDA;

-- Funds from operations (FFO) to debt of about 22%-23% in 2018
    and 2019, up from 19.1% in 2017; and

-- Free cash flow increasing to about EUR1.5 billion in 2018 and
    EUR1.7 billion in 2019, from negative in 2017.

The positive outlook reflects the possibility of a one-notch
upgrade in the next 12 months following continued solid execution
of the company's efficiencies plan, investments in upgrading its
fixed and mobile networks, and resulting improvement in margins,
recurring cash flow generation, and deleveraging within the next
year.

S&P said, "We could raise the rating if at some point over the
next 12 months we expect stabilization of the Italian market
after Iliad's entry, combined with solid execution of the
company's plan, resulting in adjusted leverage comfortably below
3.3x, and an increase in FFO to debt toward 25% and free
operating cash flow to debt sustainable above 5%.

"We could revise the outlook to stable if market disruption or
execution problems prevent Telecom Italia from reducing its
leverage in line with our expectations by mid-2019. This could
happen because the impact of competition on Telecom Italia's
revenues is higher than expected, or an inability to extract
additional meaningful cost and capital expenditure (capex)
efficiencies. If, contrary to our current expectations, Telecom
Italia moved to relinquish control over its fixed network, we
could also revise the outlook to stable unless offset by material
deleveraging."


===================
L U X E M B O U R G
===================


SWISSPORT GROUP: S&P Alters Outlook to Stable & Affirms 'B-' ICR
----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings said that it revised to stable from negative
its outlook on Luxembourg-based airport services provider
Swissport Group S.a.r.l (Swissport) and the group's related
entities. S&P also affirmed the 'B-' long-term issuer credit
rating on all entities.

S&P said, "At the same time, we affirmed our 'B-' issue rating on
the Swiss franc (CHF) 110 million (about EUR95 million) senior
secured revolving credit facility (RCF) issued by Swissport
International Ltd. The recovery rating on this instrument remains
unchanged at '3', reflecting our expectations of meaningful
recovery (50%-70%; rounded estimate: 50%) in the event of a
payment default.

"We also affirmed our 'CCC' issue rating on the group's remaining
senior unsecured notes, and we affirmed our 'CCC' issue rating on
the group's senior secured notes issued by Swissport Investment
S.A, since they have no recourse to the restricted group assets
in an event of default. The recovery rating on both the secured
and unsecured debt remains '6', indicating our expectation of
negligible recovery (0%-10%; rounded estimate: 0%) in the event
of a default.

"The outlook revision reflects our view of Swissport's improved
liquidity profile after the acquisition of Aerocare and the
revolving credit facility (RCF) replenishment in March 2018,
which we expect will remain undrawn in the next 12 months. As
long as the RCF remains less than 30% drawn, the net leverage
covenant will not be tested, eliminating the risk of a covenant
breach. That said, we expect Swissport will comply with the net
leverage covenant testing for Dec. 31, 2018, when the test level
will step down to 5.5x (from 6.5x as of June 30, 2018). In
addition, we no longer have concerns about the repayment of an
outstanding EUR285 million affiliate loan (AL) that Swissport
granted to a subsidiary of its owner, HNA Group, in September
2017. Swissport is due to receive the repayment of the AL in the
next three months after agreeing to a five- month forbearance
period on May 7, 2018. Although we note that receiving the funds
will lower Swissport's financial leverage (since they would be
used to pay down debt), we expect credit metrics will moderately
improve and liquidity will remain adequate without considering
this inflow.

"We expect better cash flow generation from 2018 onward, which
will further underpin Swissport's liquidity position. This will
follow the improvement in operating results for 2018 following
the improvement in cargo volumes seen in the past two quarters,
the good de-icing results, and expectations for lower one-off
expenses after last year's incurred costs for closing ground
handling operations in the U.S. This, combined with the expected
EUR30 million full-year contribution from recently acquired
Aerocare, will result in reported EBITDA of about EUR230 million,
up from our previous forecast of EUR180 million. As a result, we
expect the company's free operating cash flow (FOCF) will turn
moderately positive and credit metrics will moderately improve
over 2018-2019, with S&P Global Ratings adjusted debt to EBITDA
of about 5.0x (down from 5.6x in 2017) and adjusted funds from
operations (FFO) to debt of 13% (from about 8% in 2017)."

Swissport is one of the largest independent providers of ground
handling services by revenue, with average two-year revenues of
EUR2.3 billion, competing closely with WFS Global Holding SAS
(WFS), and Menzies (not rated) -- each of these companies
reported less than half of that in ground handling revenues in
2016-2017. S&P said, "We view ramp and passenger ground handling
activities as more stable than cargo handling, which is
susceptible to general economic fluctuations. Although Swissport
lags behind WFS in terms of cargo handling figures, its exposure
to this segment is not significant; it accounts for less than 20%
of revenues. In addition, while we consider the EUR70 billion-
EUR90 billion global ground handling market to be highly
fragmented, we view favorably Swissport's diversified customer
base and international footprint in the ground handling market.
With more than 800 customers at more than 230 airports around the
globe, the company is better positioned than peers in case of a
regional slowdown because its exposure is balanced across the
globe. Furthermore, airports and airlines have traditionally
provided ground handling services themselves, but, according to
the International Air Transport Association, the opening up of
the market has resulted in the outsourcing of up to 50% of ground
handling services globally to third parties such as Swissport,
which supports its growth prospects, in our view."

The current ownership structure continues to weigh on the ratings
on Swissport. The Chinese conglomerate HNA Group controls
Swissport through a majority equity stake. S&P said, "As such,
our credit analysis considers Swissport as part of the group and
incorporates HNA's potential influence in future credit-stress
scenarios that go beyond the ones already incorporated in our
stand-alone credit profile (SACP). In this sense, since our
'ccc+' group credit profile (GCP) on HNA is weaker than the 'b-'
SACP on Swissport, we believe that the weaker parent could divert
assets from its subsidiary or burden it with liabilities during
periods of financial stress. In addition, Swissport's flexibility
with regard to raising debt and capital could also be
significantly reduced."

S&P's base case assumes:

-- Revenue growth of about 6% in 2018, mainly owing to the
    impact of the Aerocare acquisition, with growth coming from
    additional volumes and price movements in Asia; revenue
    growth of 2.0%-3.0% in 2019 linked to our GDP estimates for
    the regions where the company operates.

-- EBITDA margin to gradually improve to about 13% in 2018 from
    about 10.6% in 2017, supported by an increase in cargo
    volumes at a similar fixed cost base.

-- Capital expenditure (capex) of about EUR75 million-EUR85
    million, out of which about 10% relates to growth.

-- Working capital outflow of EUR10 million per year.

-- No potential material debt-funded acquisition.

-- Pro forma full-year EBITDA contribution of about EUR30
    million for Aerocare.

-- Annual dividend payment of EUR15 million-EUR20 million to
    minority shareholders.

Based on these assumptions, S&P arrives at the following credit
measures:

-- Adjusted debt to EBITDA of about 5x in 2018 and 2019 (from
    5.6x in 2017), without considering the outstanding repayment
    due from the AL in 2018; and

-- Adjusted EBITDA interest coverage of at least 3.0x for 2018
    and 2019 up from 2x in 2017.

S&P said, "Beyond our assumptions for credit metrics, we believe
that the degree to which the ownership and management can affect
the predictability of our operating and cash flow assumptions
remains high. This is mainly due to the track record of debt-
funded acquisitions, third party sources of funding, an
unexpected $400 million affiliate loan to a subsidiary of the
parent company, and no specific financial leverage target. As a
result, we assess Swissport's financial policy as negative.

"The stable outlook reflects our expectation that organic revenue
growth, grip on cost control, and full-year contribution from
recently acquired Aerocare will contribute to improving the
EBITDA margin and adjusted EBITDA interest coverage to 3x over
the next 12 months. The stable outlook also incorporates our view
that liquidity will remain adequate regardless of whether the
company receives the outstanding amount of the AL that HNA Group
is due to repay in the next three months.

"We could lower our ratings if EBITDA generation trends
significantly below our base-case forecast, preventing FOCF from
turning positive and putting pressure on liquidity. We could also
lower our rating on Swissport if HNA Group adversely intervened
or if Swissport were drawn into any potential insolvency or
distressed restructuring as a result of HNA Group's weak credit
position.

"Given the current ownership structure, we see limited upside to
the rating at this point. An upgrade would depend on both an
upgrade on HNA Group and improvement in Swissport's SACP."


===================
M O N T E N E G R O
===================


KOMBINAT ALUMINIJUMA: CEAC Refuses to Pay EUR1.5MM in Court Fees
----------------------------------------------------------------
SeeNews reports that the Central European Aluminium Company
(CEAC) is refusing to pay EUR1.5 million (US$1.75 million) in
court fees related to an arbitration lawsuit against the
government of Montenegro, which CEAC had lost.

According to SeeNews, the country's economy ministry said on
July 25 that in this way, CEAC, owned by Russian tycoon Oleg
Deripaska, is not respecting the outcome of the arbitration which
the company itself had sought.

In May, an ad hoc committee of the International Centre for
Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) dismissed an appeal of
CEAC seeking annulment of the July 2016 ruling in favor of
Montenegro in an arbitration case regarding investments in
Montenegro's aluminium plant Kombinat Aluminijuma Podgorica
(KAP), SeeNews relates.

The economy ministry said in May that according to the ruling,
CEAC shall bear the entire cost of the arbitration proceedings
because the Paris-based tribunal has rejected the appeal of the
company, SeeNews recounts.

KAP entered bankruptcy at the end of 2013 and was later sold to
Montenegrin company Uniprom, SeeNews relays.



===========
N O R W A Y
===========


KONGSBERG AUTOMOTIVE: S&P Assigns 'B+' ICR, Outlook Stable
----------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings assigned its 'B+' long-term issuer credit
rating to Norwegian-listed auto supplier Kongsberg Automotive
ASA. The outlook is stable.

S&P also assigned its 'BB-' issue rating and '2' recovery rating
to Kongsberg Automotive's EUR275 million senior secured bond due
2025. The recovery rating reflects S&P's expectation of
substantial (70%-90%; rounded estimate 75%) recovery prospects in
the event of default.

The ratings are in line with the preliminary ratings assigned on
July 9, 2018. The bond was priced slightly higher (50 basis
points) than forecast at 5.0%. Other than that, the final
documentation does not depart from the material reviewed in July.
The now slightly higher interest rate remains in line with S&P's
assessment of the group's financial risk profile and rating
level, but leads to slightly higher recovery prospects (rounded
estimate 75%) compared to the previous rounded estimate of 70%.

S&P said, "Our rating on Kongsberg Automotive reflects our view
that the company operates in highly competitive and cyclical end
markets; automotive, power sports, and heavy equipment, which,
with its narrow product range, limits its ability to mitigate
potentially adverse business, financial, or economic conditions.
Furthermore, the company has high fixed costs (54% of total cost
as of December 2017), which limit the flexibility to reduce costs
in line with demand, which in a downturn could result in high
EBITDA margin declines. The rating also reflects recent negative
free operating cash flows (FOCF; negative 4.3% in 2017 as a
percentage of adjusted debt), which have stemmed partly from
ongoing restructuring activities and raw material price
headwinds.

We expect Kongsberg Automotive to sustain funds from operations
(FFO)-to-debt of 12%-20% while investing in further integrating
its value chain and rebalancing its geographic mix with a greater
presence in Asia. Implementing these strategic goals, alongside
rationalizing existing facilities through continued restructuring
and tax initiatives, should improve FOCF assuming restructuring
efforts tail off over the next two years and barring any major
changes in the current benign economic environment."

With EUR1.1 billion of revenue reported in 2017, Kongsberg
Automotive supplies larger tier 1 suppliers such as Adient and
some original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) such as AB Volvo and
Nissan. Kongsberg Automotive has a diverse customer base, with
its top three customers accounting for around 25% of total sales
and no single customer accounting for more than 10% of revenue.

Kongsberg Automotive operates in three subsegments: powertrain
and chassis, interiors, and specialty products. Powertrain and
chassis provided 39% of revenue in 2017, followed by specialty
products (36%) and interiors (25%).

The demand for slightly more than 50% of Kongsberg Automotive's
products ultimately relies on volumes of new car sales, although
the specialty products segment (supplying off-highway and marine
leisure craft) does add some product diversity. That said, the
auto market is highly cyclical because consumers' disposable
incomes and ability to access affordable financing fluctuate with
economic cycles. Over the next 12-18 months, we forecast
continued growth of global car production levels, albeit at a
slower pace than in the past two years, especially in the U.S.
and Europe. Geographically, Kongsberg Automotive has a
significant concentration in Europe (52% of revenues in 2017) and
a sizable footprint in North America (32%), and we anticipate it
will increase its presence in Asia (11%).

Profitability is driven by the specialty products segment--81% of
EBIT in 2017. Profitability at the powertrain and chassis
business is materially below rated peer averages (with an EBIT
margin of less than 5% in 2017) and was negative in 2016. Except
for air couplings, the company is exposed to commodity price
movements with limited pass through of raw material costs to its
customers.

In light of relatively low profitability, management embarked on
a restructuring plan in 2016 costing an estimated EUR63 million
over four years. S&P said, "Based on recent results, we believe
the company is on track to achieve a targeted EBITDA improvement
of approximately EUR27 million through the five executed closures
by the end of the year ending Dec. 31, 2019. We view
restructuring costs as an operating expenditure and do not add
these back to our adjusted EBITDA, therefore our estimate of
margin improvements also incorporates lower restructuring costs
over the next two years. We forecast an EBITDA margin (S&P Global
Ratings-adjusted, after capitalized research and development
costs and restructuring costs) of about 8%-9% in 2018, improving
to closer to 10% in 2019 (7.1% in 2017)."

S&P's view of Kongsberg Automotive's business risk profile is
constrained by the company's limited size and scope relative to
rated global auto suppliers and comparatively low adjusted EBITDA
margin. At the same time, the company has a balanced customer mix
that lessens the risk of a significant revenue decline from the
loss of a key customer.

S&P said, "Post-financing, reported gross debt stands at about
EUR275 million, which we adjust by adding the present value of
operating leases (EUR84 million of as of Dec. 31, 2017), about
EUR14 million of unfunded pension obligations, and EUR10 million
of factoring. As EBITDA margins improve, we expect leverage to
decrease to about 3.7x-3.9x in 2018 from 5.2x in 2017. Adjusted
debt-to-EBITDA is stronger than similarly rated peers. However,
we place more emphasis on cash flow post-working capital and
capital expenditures (capex) given both the business' capital-
intensive nature and historically volatile negative FOCF
(adjusted)."

S&P's base case assumes:

-- Global real GDP growth of 3.8% annually in 2018 and 2019. S&P
    expects Western European real GDP will grow by 1.9% and 1.7%
    in 2018 and 2019, and by 2.8% in 2018 and 2.5% in 2019 in
    countries belonging to NAFTA. In China, S&P expects GDP
    growth of 6.5% in 2018 and 6.3% in 2019.

-- An increase of about 2% in global automotive production
    following moderate growth in European markets, stable to
    positive trends in China, and despite some softness in the
    U.S. This is consistent with our GDP growth assumptions.

-- S&P said, "We expect revenue growth of about 5% in 2018 and
    in 2019 because of expansion in China and increased business
    wins in its specialty products segment. A gradual increase in
    EBITDA margins toward 8%-9% in 2018 and 9%-10% in 2019 (7.1%
    in 2017) primarily due to revenue growth, lower restructuring
    costs, and continued rationalization of the industrial
    footprint. In addition, we expect the company to face
    headwinds including a shortage of components and higher scrap
    rates in certain product lines."

-- Modest working capital outflow.

-- Capex of around EUR74 million in 2018 peaking at EUR80
    million in 2019.

-- The recent capital raise of about EUR41 million through
    private placement, which modestly improves debt leverage.

-- No dividends.

-- S&P does not currently incorporate acquisitions into its
    forecasts.

Based on these assumptions, S&P arrives at the following credit
measures:

-- FFO-to-debt of about 16% in 2018 and 20%-23% in 2019,
    improving from 13% in 2017.

-- Debt-to-EBITDA of 3.7x-3.9x in 2018 and 3.0x-3.3x in 2019,
    compared with 5.2x in 2017.

-- Negative FOCF-to-debt (negative 3%-5%) in 2018, trending to
    1%-2% by the end of 2019.

S&P said, "We assess Kongsberg Automotive's liquidity as
adequate, with liquidity sources at least 1.2x uses over the next
two years. We anticipate that sources will cover uses even if
forecast EBITDA declined by 30%. Moreover, we do not believe
Kongsberg Automotive has the ability to absorb high-impact, low
probability events without refinancing. In addition, it lacks a
track record of commitment to maintaining its high level of
liquidity."

Principal liquidity sources for the next 12 months are:

-- Starting cash of EUR82 million, pro forma completion of the
    refinancing;

-- Committed undrawn bank lines of EUR50 million; and

-- FFO of EUR65 million in 2018 and EUR90 million in 2019.

Principal liquidity uses for the same period are:

-- Working capital outflows of around EUR15 million-EUR20
    million; and

-- Capex of EUR75 million-EUR80 million per year.

S&P said, "The stable outlook reflects our expectation that over
the next year Kongsberg Automotive will successfully implement
planned restructuring, leading to improved EBITDA margins and
sustained adequate liquidity. We expect that Kongsberg
Automotive's adjusted FFO-to-debt will remain at 12%-20% in 2018-
2019.

"We may downgrade Kongsberg Automotive if the group's adjusted
debt-to-EBITDA trends toward 4x. We would also consider a
downgrade if adjusted FOCF was unlikely to turn positive on a
sustained basis. If restructuring costs were materially higher
than expected or the recent improvement in EBITDA margins
reverted to below 8%, ratings pressure would build.

"Although unlikely in the next 12 months, we could upgrade
Kongsberg Automotive if FOCF-to-debt looked likely remain above
5% on a sustained basis and if debt-to-EBITDA fell below 3.0x.
This would imply that the company's adjusted EBITDA margin had
increased substantially and it had moved to a more variable cost
structure, implying double-digit EBITDA margins significantly
above 10% on a sustainable basis."


===========
P O L A N D
===========


GETBACK SA: Plans to Commence Rehabilitation Proceedings
--------------------------------------------------------
Reuters reports that GetBack SA said on Aug. 1 that it has
applied to the creditors' council for approval to discontinue
accelerated arrangement proceedings.

According to Reuters, once the company gets the creditors'
council approval, it plans to file a motion to court to
discontinue accelerated arrangement proceedings and to open
rehabilitation proceedings.

GetBack SA is a Polish debt collector.



===========
R U S S I A
===========


INTERREGIONAL DISTRIBUTION: S&P Affirms 'BB/B' ICRs
---------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'BB/B' long- and short-term
issuer credit ratings on Russian electricity company
Interregional Distribution Grid Company of Centre, Public Joint-
Stock Company (IDGC of Centre). The outlook is stable.

S&P said, "The affirmation reflects our expectation that IDGC of
Centre's stable EBITDA margin from its regulated activities,
coupled with lower interest rates, will improve cash interest
coverage metrics, with FFO interest coverage surpassing 4x. At
the same time, we forecast that an increase in capex in the
coming years could make IDGC of Centre's cash flows turn negative
after capex and dividends, preventing further deleveraging.

"We project that IDGC of Centre's S&P Global Ratings-adjusted
revenues will grow by up to 2% in 2018 and by up to 4% per year
over 2019-2020, while its EBITDA margin remains in the 19%-21%
range. Revenue growth and stable EBITDA margin should moderately
improve operating cash flow generation, while decreasing interest
rates should reduce interest expense, further supporting credit
metrics. IDGC of Centre has benefited from a better interest rate
environment in Russia and has reduced its average cost of debt to
8.5% currently from about 10.5% in 2017. The company achieved
this by replacing existing debt with new one, such as its Russian
ruble (RUB) 10 billion 6.95% bond issued earlier this year and
early repayment of two 12.42% RUB5 billion bond issues. We
forecast that IDGC of Centre's FFO to debt would be around 25%-
28% in 2018-20, versus 25.6% in 2017, while FFO cash interest
cover strengthens to about 4.1x-4.6x in 2018-2020, versus 3.7x in
2017.

"At the same time, we expect that additional cash flow generated
from operations will go toward capital expenditures, likely to
increase to about RUB14 billion-RUB16 billion annually over 2018-
20 from about RUB10.4 billion in 2017 (all numbers presented net
of connection fees related capex). As a result, we assume that
the company's discretionary cash flows (DCF), positive in 2017,
will turn negative in 2018. Moreover, we understand that IDGC of
Centre's parent company, government-controlled electricity
transmission and distribution holding Rosseti, is currently
considering a new development program aimed at increasing usage
of smart grid elements (such as smart meters) at its companies.
This could spark additional increases in capex at IDGC of Centre
and, in turn, a greater constraint on DCF. We expect more clarity
on this program and its effect on IDGC of Centre by the end of
2018. Our forecasts of negative DCF this year underpin our
assessment of the company's financial risk profile as aggressive.

"Our calculations of IDGC of Centre's EBITDA for 2017 do not
include the approximate RUB1.6 billion of revenues from grid
connection fees, which we see as a non-operating item, i.e.
contribution to capex rather than revenues. We understand that
connection fees are regulated so that prices cover related
expenditures with zero margins. Therefore, in our calculations,
we exclude a similar amount from capex. All our base-case
assumptions are presented on a net basis (excluding connection
fees revenues and related capex).

"IDGC of Centre's business risk profile, which we assess as fair,
remains constrained by a tariff regime that lacks protection from
political intervention, a track record of government attempts to
manually control electricity tariffs, as well as by the company's
somewhat concentrated customer base and above-industry-average
losses in grids. Still, the tariffs are set for five years based
on revenue indexation, and are designed to cover related
operating expenditures and capex. Also, IDGC of Centre benefits
from its dominant market position as the major transmission grid
operator in 11 Russian regions, and the track record of
relatively stable earnings from regulated power distribution.

"Our ratings on IDGC of Centre include one notch of uplift above
our 'bb-' assessment of the company's stand-alone credit profiles
(SACP), reflecting its moderately strategic status within Rosseti
holding. We think IDGC of Centre is reasonably successful in its
core activity and would likely receive support from Rosseti if it
fell into financial difficulty. We believe that Rosseti has a
sound history of operations as a consolidated group with
strengthening mechanisms of intragroup coordination and support.

"We do not believe that IDGC of Centre is likely to be sold. We
believe that government support would likely flow to IDGC through
Rosseti and incorporate a one notch uplift to the rating through
group support. We continue to see a moderate likelihood that
Russia (foreign currency BBB-/Stable/A-3, local currency
BBB/Stable/A-2), IDGC of Centre's ultimate owner, would provide
timely and sufficient extraordinary support to the company in the
event of financial distress. Despite its small size, local focus,
and limited visibility in the overall Russian context, we believe
that the Rosseti group is likely to support IDGC of Centre in
cases of stress, and that government support to the Rosseti group
will to some degree benefit the operating subsidiaries.

"The stable outlook on IDGC reflects our expectation of stable
operating performance with EBITDA margins around 19%-21% in the
coming 12 months. We expect that the supportive interest rate
environment will enable the company to maintain FFO to debt
comfortably above 20% and maintain FFO its cash interest coverage
around 4x (the ratios currently have meaningful headroom for the
current rating level). At the same time, we expect the company to
generate negative DCF due to increasing capex. The stable outlook
also incorporates our projection of no significant weakening in
Rosseti's credit quality or its policy of support for
subsidiaries.

"We could downgrade IDGC of Centre if its FFO to debt dropped to
below 12% and FFO cash interest coverage to below 2x, although
such a decline is not part of our base case scenario. This could
happen if IDGC of Centre's capex increased significantly because
of a digitization program or if the company were to pay markedly
higher dividends. Rating pressure might also arise if the company
started to rely excessively on short-term financing or its
liquidity deteriorated to less-than-adequate levels.

"We could raise our rating on IDGC of Centre if its DCF were to
turn at least neutral, ensuring that the group's leverage doesn't
increase, while liquidity remained at least adequate at all
times. For an upgrade we would also expect the company's FFO cash
interest coverage ratio to stay above 4x while the FFO-to-debt
ratio to remain above 25%."


MKB-LEASING: S&P Affirms 'B-/B' ICRs & Revises Outlook to Neg.
--------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings revised its outlook on Russia-based MKB-
Leasing to negative from stable. The 'B-/B' long- and short-term
issuer credit ratings were affirmed.

The outlook change follows a similar action on MKB-Leasing's
parent, REGION Investment, on July 27, 2018. S&P does not view
MKB-Leasing as an insulated subsidiary of REGION Investment;
therefore, the outlook and ratings on both entities move in
tandem.

S&P said, "We do not separate our ratings on MKB-Leasing from
that on REGION Investment because we consider that regulatory
restrictions with regards to liquidity, capital, or funding of
leasing companies in Russia are insufficient to insulate the
company from its parent. We also consider that there are limited
regulatory restrictions preventing the subsidiary from supporting
the group to an extent that would impair its stand-alone
creditworthiness. Our ratings on MKB-Leasing incorporate the risk
that, if the group were in a credit-stress scenario, REGION
Investment could draw resources from MKB-Leasing.

"The negative outlook mirrors that on Region Investment.
If we lower our rating on REGION Investment, we will take a
similar rating action on MKB-Leasing. If, contrary to our
expectations, unfavorable business, financial, and economic
conditions arise that put MKB-Leasing at risk of not meeting its
financial commitments, we could lower the ratings to 'CCC+' or
lower.

"We see limited potential for ratings upside currently, given our
rating on the parent. A change in MKB-Leasing's group status
would have no immediate impact on the ratings, even if we were to
upgrade REGION Investment, which view as unlikely at present."


MOSCOW UNITED: S&P Affirms BB ICR, Outlook Stable
-------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'BB' long-term issuer credit
rating on Russia-based electricity utility Moscow United Electric
Grid Co. PJSC (MOESK). The outlook is stable.

S&P said, "The affirmation reflects our expectation that MOESK
will deliver generally stable operating performance over the
coming year, with EBITDA increasing broadly in line with
inflation. By June 2019 MOESK will approach the RUB13 billion
put-option on its notes due in 2026 and it will need to address
RUB10 billion of bank debt maturing in fourth-quarter 2019.
However, because the maturing debt represents about 25% of the
company's overall debt portfolio, the terms of future refinancing
will be important for the maturity profile, cost of debt, and
ultimately interest coverage ratios of MOESK.

"We expect that MOESK's EBITDA margin will remain at around 19%-
21% in 2018-2019, translating into FFO to debt of about 20%-23%
and FFO cash interest coverage of about 3.7x-4.3x in 2018-2019,
versus 22.3% and 4x, respectively, in 2017.

"We expect MOESK's discretionary cash flow (DCF) to remain
slightly negative in 2018-2019, which constrains our assessment
of the company's aggressive financial risk profile. MOESK has
demonstrated improvement in its traditionally negative DCF,
reducing it from negative RUB8.8 billion in 2016 to negative
RUB2.1 billion in 2017, through stable capital expenditures
(capex), lower dividends, and moderate EBITDA growth, and we
expect DCF to stay around this level over the coming two years.
We understand, however, that MOESK's parent company, government-
controlled electricity transmission and distribution holding
Rosseti, is currently considering a new development program aimed
at increasing usage of smart grid elements (such as smart meters)
at its companies. We are expecting more clarity on any
implications of such program in the near future.

"Our calculations of MOESK's EBITDA for 2017 do not include the
about RUB7.1 billion of revenues from grid connection fees, which
we see as a non-operating item, i.e. contribution to capex rather
than revenues. We understand that connection fees are regulated
so that prices cover related expenditures with zero margins.
Therefore, in our calculations, we exclude a similar amount from
capex. All our base-case assumptions are presented on a net basis
(excluding connection fees revenues and related capex)."

MOESK has taken advantage of declining interest rates in the
Russian debt market by refinancing part of its portfolio with the
lower rates. This has resulted in a drop in the average interest
rate to 8.1% at end-June 2018 from about 9.5% at end-December
2016. MOESK currently faces refinancing of up to 25% (including
put option on the notes) of its portfolio in 2019. Given the
volatile nature of the Russian debt market and the geopolitical
context, sharp changes in the market rate could have a
significant impact -- positive or negative -- on MOESK's cost of
debt and ultimately financial metrics, in particular FFO to debt
and FFO cash interest coverage.

S&P said, "MOESK's business risk profile, in our view, remains
constrained by a tariff regime that lacks protection from
political intervention, a track record of government attempts to
manually control electricity tariffs, as well as the company's
somewhat concentrated customer base and relatively high losses in
grids. Still, the tariffs are set for five years based on revenue
indexation, and are designed to cover related operating
expenditures and capex. At the same time, we note MOESK's role as
the major distribution grid operator in Moscow, both the city and
region -- the most lucrative areas in the country, in our view.
MOESK benefits from its relatively stable earnings base derived
from regulated power distribution.

"Our ratings on MOESK include a one-notch uplift from our 'bb-'
assessment of the company's stand-alone credit profile (SACP),
reflecting our view of the company's moderately strategic status
within Rosseti holding. We think MOESK is reasonably successful
in its core activity and would likely receive financial support
from Rosseti if needed. We believe that Rosseti has built a
record of solid operations as a consolidated group with
strengthening mechanisms of intragroup coordination and support.
We do not believe that MOESK is likely to be sold, and that
government support would likely flow to MOESK through Rosseti. We
continue to see a moderate likelihood that Russia (foreign
currency BBB-/Stable/A-3, local currency BBB/Stable/A-2), MOESK's
ultimate owner, would provide timely and sufficient extraordinary
support to the company in the event of financial distress.
Despite its small size, local focus, and limited visibility in
the overall Russian context, we believe that the Rosseti group is
likely to support MOESK in cases of stress, and that government
support to the Rosseti group will to some degree benefit the
operating subsidiaries.

"The stable outlook on MOESK reflects our expectation that the
company will maintain FFO to debt above 20% and FFO cash interest
coverage of about 3.7x-4.3x (the ratios currently have a
meaningful headroom for the rating level). We would expect MOESK
to refinance all of its debt maturing in 2019 proactively, well
in advance of actual maturity. We also expect that the company's
financial policy regarding dividends and liquidity management
will remain prudent. The stable outlook also incorporates our
projection of no significant weakening in Rosseti's credit
quality or its policy of support for subsidiaries.

"A negative rating action could result from a material weakening
in liquidity -- possible if MOESK was unable to timely secure
refinancing sources for its upcoming 2019 maturities. We could
downgrade MOESK if we observed a more aggressive financial policy
or marked increase in capex from higher-than-expected debt.
Specifically, we could downgrade MOESK if the company's FFO to
debt were to decrease below 12% and FFO cash interest coverage
dropped below 2x, although such a decline is not part of our base
case.

"We could raise our rating on MOESK if its FFO to debt remained
comfortably above 25% and its FFO cash interest coverage stayed
above 4x after refinancing. An upgrade could materialize if MOESK
delivers non-negative free cash flow after capex and dividends.
An upgrade would also hinge on more certainty about the company's
future capex program."


REGION INVESTMENT: S&P Affirms 'B-/B' ICRs, Outlook Negative
------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings revised its outlook on Russia-based REGION
Investment Co. AO and its subsidiary Region Broker to negative
from stable. The 'B-/B' long- and short-term issuer credit
ratings on both entities were affirmed.

In previous years, REGION, which historically focused on capital
market activities, has been moving into other financial market
segments. While this offers some potential diversification, the
group's capital buffers have gradually weakened as acquisitions
outpaced capital generation. S&P believes that this weighs on the
group's creditworthiness, since it leaves it potentially more
vulnerable to setbacks in the integration of these acquisitions
or to a period of sustained adverse market conditions.

REGION has been actively acquiring new business lines in 2018,
similar to what we have observed in the previous few years. In
February this year, its subsidiary Far Eastern Bank acquired a
non-state pension fund that focuses on mandatory pension savings.
Then later on, in June, the group acquired control over JSC
Yugoria, a property/casualty insurance company focusing
predominantly on motor insurance. S&P said, "We estimate that the
capital outflow for these transactions in the first half of 2018
totalled Russian ruble (RUB) 3.9 billion or around 29% of
REGION's total adjusted capital on a consolidated basis, as of
Dec. 31, 2017. As a result, we estimate our risk-adjusted capital
(RAC) ratio to have dropped to 2.9%-3.1% at midyear 2018 from
3.5% at year-end 2017, based on preliminary consolidated
accounts. We understand that the group is contemplating further
acquisition deals for the second half of 2018, in addition to the
recent acquisition of MKB Leasing. Nevertheless, we expect the
RAC ratio will remain just above 3%, assuming the group performs
in line with its business plan."

S&P said, "At the same time, we note that the stand-alone credit
quality of acquired companies is generally commensurate with or
better than that of REGION. So far, REGION has been able to
maintain the stability of the management teams of acquired
companies, their risk appetite, and growth strategy, which we
consider supportive of the group's credit standing. We also note
that some exposures on REGION's balance sheet are positions where
the risk is ultimately borne by the clients. In addition,
REGION's assets are primarily self-funded and are matched with
liabilities, as shown by our liquidity coverage metric of around
100%.

"The negative outlook stems from our view that REGION's strategy
of aggressive growth via acquisitions is weighing on the group's
already weak capitalization, making its future performance
reliant on successful integration of the new businesses.

"We could lower the ratings if the group appears even less able
to withstand a period of stressful conditions, and is therefore
dependent on favorable business, financial, and economic
conditions to meet its financial obligations. This could happen
if its capitalization appears likely to weaken materially. This
may result from pronounced underperformance of the group's
proprietary positions, very large client deals, or a more
aggressive stance toward growth or acquisitions. We may also
lower the ratings if we see market confidence in the group
deteriorating as a result of the weakening capital buffer.

"We could revise the outlook to stable if we see REGION
successfully integrating the newly acquired companies, restoring
its capital base through retained profits, or reducing its risk
appetite, such that the projected RAC ratio is sustainably above
3.5%. This could also be consistent with management deciding to
pursue a more prudent and predictable financial policy."


===========================
U N I T E D   K I N G D O M
===========================


HOUSE OF FRASER: C.banner International Abandons Rescue Plan
------------------------------------------------------------
Scheherazade Daneshkhu at The Financial Times report that
House of Fraser is fighting for its survival after the Hong Kong-
listed company that also owns toy shop Hamleys abandoned plans to
rescue one of the UK's oldest and more storied retail chains.
According to the FT, C.banner International, a Chinese fashion
group, said on Aug. 1 it was "impracticable and inadvisable" to
proceed with acquiring a controlling stake in the department
store, which would have given the company a GBP70 million
lifeline, because of a collapse of its own share price over the
past month.

House of Fraser, which was founded as a Glasgow draper in 1849,
said in a statement it was "in discussions with alternative
investors and is exploring options to obtain the required
investment on the same timetable", but did not provide additional
details on who might step in to provide a cash infusion, the FT
relates.

House of Fraser has been badly hit by a drop in shopping visits
to high streets as more people buy online and is weighed down by
its property commitments, the FT relays.  Its creditors in June
approved a recovery plan involving the closure of 31 of its 59
stores under a CVA that would see a sharp fall in its rent costs,
the FT recounts.

The CVA was a condition of the proposed sale of a 51 per cent
stake in the group to C.banner by Nanjing Xinjiekou Department
Store, House of Fraser's Chinese owner, the FT notes.  C.banner
was to have acquired 34 per cent of House of Fraser for GBP71.6
million and subscribe to GBP70 million of new House of Fraser
Group shares, giving it a total stake of 51%, the FT discloses.

The rating agency Moody's determined House of Fraser was in
technical default on its loans, the FT relays.  It has also said
that if the company was unable to complete a successful
refinancing, "recovery rates for the outstanding debt would be
less than 90% on average across the different debt instruments",
the FT notes.

The CVA also faced a legal challenge last month by a group of
landlords which argued that their interests had been
"disproportionately affected during this CVA process", the FT
recounts.


MERGERMARKET MIDCO 2: S&P Alters Outlook to Neg. & Affirms B ICR
----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings said that it revised its outlook on U.K.-based
financial information group Mergermarket Midco 2 Ltd. (Acuris) to
negative from stable. S&P also affirmed its 'B' long-term issuer
credit rating on Acuris.

S&P said, "At the same time, we affirmed our 'B' issue rating on
Acuris' GBP50 million senior secured revolving credit facility
(RCF), GBP228 million first-lien term loan B1, and $200 million
term loan B2. The recovery rating on these loans is unchanged at
'3', reflecting our expectation of meaningful recovery (50%-70%;
rounded estimate: 60%) in the event of a default. We also
affirmed the 'CCC+' issue rating on the group's second-lien $106
million facility. The recovery rating on this facility is '6',
reflecting our expectation of negligible recovery (0%-10%;
rounded estimate: 0%) in the event of a default.

"Finally, we withdrew the issue and recovery ratings on the
former debt facilities issued by Mergermarket USA Inc., which
were repaid as part of the refinancing in 2017.

"The outlook revision reflects our forecast of a weakening in
free cash flows and credit metrics in 2018, driven by higher
interest rates, continued expansionary capital expenditure
(capex), lower working capital inflows, and the potential for
restructuring and transaction-related charges. Additionally, we
anticipate that the group's financial policy is likely to result
in continued bolt-on mergers and acquisitions (M&A), which could
include funding via additional debt drawings.

"We note that Acuris is exposed to foreign-exchange translation
effects, particularly on its U.S. dollar earnings, and
approximately 50% of its term debt is denominated in U.S.
dollars.

"We see a risk of higher interest costs in our forecasts from a
full-year of interest on the higher debt amount after the 2017
refinancing and from rising base rates in the U.S. and U.K.
Additionally, working capital inflows will be materially lower in
2018, in part due to cash payables for items related to the 2017
refinancing.

"Acuris continues to invest in expanding its products and plans
to spend around 8% of sales in 2018 on capex. Our free cash flow
measures are calculated after total capex and we also adjust
EBITDA for capitalized development costs, which in 2018 we
estimate at around GBP10 million. Our estimates for forecast
interest expenses, capex, and capitalized development costs are
higher than our 2017 estimates. When combined with the highly
leveraged capital structure, the potential for further M&A and
limited headroom under the current rating are key drivers of our
negative outlook.

"The rating reflects our view of Acuris' stable and predictable
business characteristics, but is constrained by the group's
highly leveraged capital structure, aggressive financial policy,
and the weakening we forecast in its credit metrics. The business
is supported by high subscription-based revenues, high
subscription renewal rates, and a good cash-conversion profile.

"Acuris, which reported GBP185 million of revenues in 2017
(invoiced sales), is a provider of financial news, information,
and data intelligence to financial, professional services, and
corporate firms globally. In 2017, we estimate that about 47% of
the group's revenues were generated from Europe, the Middle East,
and Africa, 37% from the Americas, and around 16% from Asia
Pacific.

"Our view is that while some alternative or similar products
exist in the market, Acuris has relatively strong market
positions with its key products and brand recognition with
customers, as is partly evident from the strong renewal rates. We
also believe that the subscription cost for the financial news
and intelligence is not material to most users. We view the
quality and utility of the products and available alternatives as
more important factors to the end users in driving subscription
decisions.

"We view the key risks to Acuris' business strength as including
a loss of relevance or drop in the perceived quality of the key
information and intelligence products provided, the potential for
higher competition and superior alternatives from competitors,
and lastly, risks to the security of the group's material data
and IT systems.

"Acuris' 2017 adjusted EBITDA was GBP58 million, which equates to
adjusted leverage of 11.5x (or 8.4x excluding the shareholder
instruments that we treat as debt). In our adjusted metrics, we
treat as debt minority shareholder GIC's preference shares, which
were GBP182 million at year-end 2017 and are subject to an 11%
annual payment-in-kind rate.

In S&P base case, it assumes:

-- Moderate GDP increases of about 2.9%, 2.6%, and 2.0% in the
    U.S. in 2018, 2019, and 2020, respectively, and GDP increases
    of about 2.3%, 1.9%, and 1.7% in the eurozone in 2018, 2019,
    and 2020, respectively.

-- Revenue growth of 5%-9% for 2018-2020. Acuris has typically
    grown revenues above GDP growth and is indirectly exposed to
    the performance of the specific financial markets in which
    its subscribers operate, for example, the credit and equity
    markets.

-- S&P's forecast of Acuris' reported revenues at GBP188
    million-GBP193 million in 2018, GBP198 million-GBP203 million
    in 2019, and GBP209 million-GBP214 million in 2020.

-- S&P's forecast of the group's adjusted EBITDA margin at
    around 31%-32% in 2018-2020, resulting in EBITDA estimates of
    GBP58 million-GBP60 million in 2018, GBP62 million-GBP64
    million in 2019, and GBP67 million-GBP69 million in 2020.

-- Capex of around 8% of revenues, equating to around GBP15
    million-GBP16 million per year, of which S&P estimates GBP7
    million-GBP8 million is maintenance.

-- S&P assumptions for annual M&A of GBP24 million in 2018,
    including the acquisition of SparkSpread, GBP12.5 million in
    2019, and GBP15 million in 2020.

-- No dividends.


Based on these assumptions, S&P arrives at the following credit
measures:

-- Adjusted debt to EBITDA of 11.5x-12.0x in 2018, 11.0x-11.5x
    in 2019, and 10.5x-11.0x in 2020. Excluding shareholder
    loans, this translates into leverage of 8.1x-8.6x in 2018,
    7.5x-8.0x in 2019, and 7.0x-7.5x in 2020.

-- Funds from operations (FFO) to cash interest coverage of
    1.7x-2.2x in 2018 and 2019 and 1.9x-2.4x in 2020.

-- Adjusted free operating cash flow (FOCF) of GBP17 million-
    GBP19 million in 2018, GBP23 million-GBP25 million in 2019,
    and GBP25 million-GBP27 million in 2020.

S&P said, "We believe that Acuris' liquidity will remain
adequate, benefitting from the largely available GBP50 million
RCF and the absence of near-term debt maturities. Over the next
12 months, we expect the group's available liquidity sources to
comfortably cover its liquidity uses by more than 3x, and
liquidity sources could exceed uses by over GBP60 million even if
forecast EBITDA declines by 15%.

"However, we note that the group's bolt-on acquisition expansion
strategy could consume cash unexpectedly. We anticipate that some
level of refinancing would be required in order to absorb high-
impact, low-probability events, and the lack of traded debt and
equity instruments in the capital markets constrains the
liquidity assessment."

S&P estimates that Acuris' principal liquidity sources during the
12 months from June 30, 2018, will comprise:

-- Cash on balance sheet of about GBP20 million;
-- Committed funds available under the RCF of around GBP35
    million;
-- Forecast cash FFO of about GBP25 million-GBP28 million; and
-- Working capital inflows of GBP5 million-GBP7 million.

S&P estimates that Acuris' principal liquidity uses during the
same period will comprise:

-- Total capex of about GBP15 million, of which we include about
    GBP7 million in our usage calculation as maintenance capex;

-- Seasonal working capital requirements of up to GBP13 million;
    and

-- Contracted earn-outs of around GBP5 million.

S&P said, "Acuris has a financial covenant that stipulates a
maximum 10x total net debt leverage ratio, tested when its
multicurrency RCF is at least 35% drawn (equivalent to GBP17.5
million). We forecast covenant compliance over the next 12
months.

"The negative outlook reflects our view that due to the high
leverage at year-end 2017 of 11.5x adjusted debt to EBITDA (or
8.4x excluding the shareholder instruments), there is potential
downside risk to our base-case forecasts from higher interest
rates in the U.S. and U.K. In addition, the likelihood of
continued M&A could result in additional restructuring charges
and debt drawings, thereby weakening earnings and preventing
deleveraging. We do not see any headroom under the current
rating.

"We could lower the ratings in the next 12 months if the group's
FFO cash interest coverage declined sustainably below 2.0x.
Additionally, we could lower the ratings if FOCF were weaker than
our base-case forecast, which is around GBP18 million for 2018.
Any further debt-funded acquisitions or shareholder returns could
also weigh on our ratings.

"We could revise the outlook to stable in the next 12 months if
the group demonstrates a deleveraging trend, and FFO cash
interest coverage remains anchored above 2.0x. This would need to
be supported by continued growth in underlying operating
performance, margin stability, and growing FOCF generation."


RANGERS FOOTBALL: One Month-Deadline Set to Agree on Case
----------------------------------------------------------
James Mulholland at The Scottish Sun reports that a judge has
given parties in a GBP28.9 million action involving "oldco"
Rangers one month to finish their examination of a large database
of information.

Lord Doherty made the order after being addressed by lawyers
acting for the liquidators of Rangers and the Glasgow side's
former administrators Paul Clark and David Whitehouse, The
Scottish Sun relates.

According to The Scottish Sun, the liquidators -- BDO -- are
seeking more than GBP28 million of damages from Mr. Clark and
Whitehouse over the way they allegedly handled the winding up of
the 'Gers six years ago.

The two men -- who were employed by financial services firm Duff
& Phelps -- were charged by police for alleged criminal activity
during their involvement with Rangers, The Scottish Sun recounts.

However, they were both acquitted of any wrong doing and are
currently suing the Chief Constable of Police Scotland and Lord
Advocate for damages, according to The Scottish Sun.

Sitting at the Court of Session on July 27, Lord Doherty heard
that parties in the case had access to information from
prosecutors and police, The Scottish Sun discloses.

BDO's lawyer Craig Sandison QC, also said that both sides had
access to information which was contained in an electronic
database, The Scottish Sun notes.

Mr. Sandison, as cited by The Scottish Sun, said he expected the
exercise to be completed within one month.

He added that if the exercise wasn't completed, both parties in
the case would return to court to seek an order from the judge on
how they should proceed, The Scottish Sun relays.

                    About Rangers Football Club

Rangers Football Club PLC -- http://www.rangers.premiumtv.co.uk/
-- is a United Kingdom-based company engaged in the operation of
a professional football club.


TRITON SOLAR: Moody's Assigns B3 CFR, Outlook Stable
----------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service assigned a B3 Corporate Family Rating
to Triton Solar US Acquisition Co. and a B3 to its proposed
senior secured first lien debt facilities. The proposed debt will
be used along with sponsor and strategic investor equity to fund
the purchase of Triton, cash to the balance sheet, and fees and
expenses. Triton, which is comprised of the NDS business and
certain other pay TV industry video assets, is being acquired by
private equity firm Permira from Cisco Systems, Inc. Permira
previously owned NDS from 2009 to 2012. The rating outlook is
stable.

RATINGS RATIONALE

Triton's B3 Corporate Family Rating reflects the expectation of
continuing revenue declines, challenges of setting the company up
as a stand-alone entity while reducing the cost structure and
limited initial cash flow. Moody's expects revenue declines to
continue over the next couple years as declines persist in
subscriber fees, middleware, and video processing. Moody's
expects management to expand margins through substantial cost
cutting initiatives including centralizing the research and
development workforce and reducing investment in video processing
and cloud development businesses. If management is able to
achieve its cost cutting plans, pro forma leverage could fall
below 4x in the next 12-18 months (pre-TSA and restructuring
charges; inclusive of those costs, leverage will be considerably
higher).

The ratings also reflect the company's solid market position in
the satellite smartcard and video processing markets catering to
large global pay TV operators and the company's large installed
customer base and recurring nature of services revenue associated
with their product offering.

Pro forma free cash flow is estimated to be negative for FY 2019
impacted by the significant costs, retention payments and TSA
expenses required to separate the business from Cisco. Free cash
flow is expected to be positive in FY 2020 as separation costs
decline and aggressive cost reductions flow through. The ratings
are constrained by the limited availability of stand-alone
historical financial statements and significant adjustments
needed to estimate the run rate performance of the company.
Ratings could be upgraded if the company is able to stabilize
revenues, significantly improve profitability and drive cash flow
to debt above 8%. Ratings could be downgraded if revenue declines
do not show some signs of moderating, separation from Cisco does
not go as planned or free cash flow is negative on other than a
temporary basis.

Liquidity is adequate based on an estimated $71 million of cash
at closing, an undrawn $50 million revolver and an expectation
for negative free cash flow in FY 2019, followed by positive free
cash flow in FY 2020.

Assignments:

Issuer: Triton Solar US Acquisition Co.

Probability of Default Rating, Assigned B3-PD

Corporate Family Rating, Assigned B3

Senior Secured First Lien Bank Credit Facilities, Assigned B3
(LGD3)

Outlook Actions:

Issuer: Triton Solar US Acquisition Co.

Outlook, Assigned Stable

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Diversified
Technology Rating Methodology published in December 2015.

Triton is a global provider of video infrastructure technology
comprised of (i) NDS (security and middleware solutions to global
Pay TV operators) (ii)IVP (video processing and cloud DVR
solutions). The company, headquartered in Staines, UK had pro
forma revenues of approximately $882 million for the last twelve
months ending April 30, 2018.


===================
U Z B E K I S T A N
===================


HALK BANK: S&P Raises ICR to 'B+' on Substantial Capital Support
----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings said that it raised its long-term issuer
credit rating on Uzbekistan-based Halk Bank to 'B+' from 'B'. At
the same time, S&P affirmed its 'B' short-term issuer credit
rating on Halk Bank. The outlook is stable.

The upgrade of Halk Bank reflects our view that the bank's
capitalization strengthened materially in 2017 and will increase
even further in 2018-2019 because of the material capital support
that the Ministry of Finance and Uzbek Fund for Reconstruction
and Development have provided and promised. In 2017, Halk Bank
received Uzbekistani sum (UZS) 712 billion of capital support,
which substantially improved its capitalization and regulatory
ratios. The bank's regulatory capital adequacy ratio stood at
25.6% at year-end 2017, well above the current minimum of 12.5%.

According to the presidential decree on May 4, 2018, Halk Bank is
to receive an additional UZS1.6 trillion of capital over 2018-
2019, and the bank will be free from all taxes until 2023. S&P
believes that the promised capital support will be a significant
boost for the bank's capitalization and will improve its risk-
adjusted capital ratio to close to 14.6% as of year-end 2019. The
promised capital support would give the bank sufficient resources
to further develop its lending to retail clients and small-to-
midsize enterprises in Uzbekistan and improve its credit standing
as a systemically important financial institution and
administrator of the national pension system.

S&P said, "In our capital forecast, we take into account growth
in risk-weighted assets of 30%-35% over the next 12-18 months,
driven primarily by retail lending and interbank placements. We
also take into account weak profitability due to still-low
operating efficiency and credit losses, which will likely remain
elevated in 2018-2019."

In 2017, Halk Bank's asset quality deteriorated, and its cost of
risk increased to 3.6% versus 2.2% in 2016. Likewise, the bank's
nonperforming assets increased to 4.9% in 2017 from 3.8% in 2016,
reflecting the deteriorating financial situation of some of its
private corporate borrowers. S&P said, "We note that
historically, the bank's key asset quality metrics have been
slightly worse than those of its peers in Uzbekistan. For
example, the bank's reported average cost of risk for the past
three years was 2.54%, versus 1.21% on average for its peers. In
our view, this is because unlike other state-owned banks,
historically Halk Bank has focused more on retail and private
corporations, and to a lesser extent on projects that are
guaranteed by the government. We therefore view the bank's risk
position as moderately negative for the ratings."

With total assets of UZS7.0 trillion (about US$900 million), Halk
Bank is the seventh-largest bank in Uzbekistan. The bank acts as
an exclusive manager for pension fund deposits and holds a
leading market share of 20% in terms of retail deposits. Halk
Bank also has the widest branch network in the country. However,
Halk Bank's overall business profile remains a credit negative in
our view, given the bank's long history of insufficient
profitability to support internal capital build-up, as evident
from sporadic capital injections from the government.

Halk Bank's funding profile is better than that of its domestic
peers and takes the form of stable and granular pension fund
deposits from individuals, which represent of about 60% of its
total liabilities. S&P thinks that the bank's liquidity position
and management are similar to those of other state-owned banks.

S&P said, "We view Halk Bank as a government-related entity (GRE)
with a very high likelihood of extraordinary support from the
Uzbek government. We factor into our assessment Halk Bank's very
important role for and very strong link with the sovereign.
However, this does not lead to any uplift in the ratings.

"The stable outlook on Halk Bank reflects our view that state
ownership and ongoing government support, primarily in the form
of capital, will prove sufficient to preserve the bank's
creditworthiness over the next 12 months.

"We could lower the ratings over the next 12-18 months if capital
injections from the government are unexpectedly delayed, or the
total amount of injections is lower than we incorporate into our
forecast. We could also lower the ratings following the bank's
implementation of a more aggressive capital management strategy
involving higher growth than we expect in risk-weighted assets
that do not increase the capital base and that reduce capital
buffers below sustainable levels.

"An upgrade over the 12-month outlook horizon hinges on our view
of an improvement in the creditworthiness of the sovereign, as
well as on a material improvement in Halk Bank's profitability or
asset quality metrics so that they are on par with those of its
peers."


NATIONAL BANK OF UZBEKISTAN: S&P Affirms B+/B ICR, Outlook Stable
-----------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'B+/B' long- and short-term
issuer credit ratings on National Bank for Foreign Economic
Activity of the Republic of Uzbekistan (NBU). The outlook remains
stable.

S&P said, "The affirmation reflects our view that despite our
expectation that the bank's capital buffer will be eroded, NBU
will continue to play a noticeable role in the domestic economy
while benefiting from ongoing state support and a stable funding
base. NBU is a government agency that allocates centralized
resources to strategic sectors of the economy. As such, it is
designed to grant long-term loans for capital investment
purposes. We believe that its leading position and business
stability are well entrenched and unlikely to diminish over the
12-18 month rating horizon.

"We understand that over the next 12-18 months, NBU will target
relatively aggressive organic assets growth, which will likely
pressure the bank's capital, in our view. We are therefore
revising our capital and earnings assessment to weak from
moderate, which, however, is still neutral for the rating. The
projected loan portfolio growth is 20%-30% in 2018 and 40%-50% in
2019. This expansion could be fuelled by both foreign and local
government funding sources. At this stage, we do not know the
government's exact plans to finance the growth with new capital
injections and do not incorporate any capital increase into our
forecast. However, we will revise our base-case assumptions if a
potential capital injection is announced. We therefore forecast
that NBU's risk-adjusted capital (RAC) ratio will likely reduce
to 3%-4% over the next 12 months, down from 5.8% at year-end
2017.

"While we do see potential for a rise in credit risk due to NBU's
high growth rates, we believe the government would continue
providing direct or indirect support to partly mitigate risks.
Given NBU's role as a government agency, we also acknowledge that
high expansion pace might be reasonable due to the still-limited
size of the banking sector compared to the domestic economy, as
well as the emerging nature of Uzbekistan, and investors'
interest."

Additional pressure on capital comes from potential credit
losses, which might arise from the large amount of foreign
currency loans (around 83% of the total as of March 31, 2018).
The risks are increasingly relevant after exchange regime
liberalization on Sept. 5, 2017.

S&P said, "Following this event, the government approved the
optional restructuring of loans to some strategically important
foreign currency borrowers, postponing interest payments for
about one year. We understand that many of those decided to take
advantage of this opportunity and accepted the option. However,
all interests continue accruing on the bank's accounts and as a
result, the NBU's ratio of interest received to interest accrued
reduced to 70% for 2017, against 100% for 2016. Such reduction
does not reflect similar deterioration of the actual loan book
quality in our view. NBU is also permitted to postpone payments
to the government on the funding, which finances respective loans
to strategically important foreign currency borrowers at the
terms mirroring those used for above-mentioned foreign currency
loans restructuring. This state initiative is designed to
preserve the stability of the Uzbek economy and we consider it as
a form of government support. We understand that the
normalization of payments on respected projects will gradually
start in 2019.

"Overall, we believe that NBU's potentially problematic exposures
(individually impaired, restructured loans, and loans overdue but
not impaired) are adequately provisioned at the moment and form
around 4% of total loans. We expect this ratio to remain broadly
unchanged over the next 12 months.

"The stable outlook on NBU reflects S&P Global Ratings' view of
the balance between the continuous expected state support over
the next 12 months and the challenges related to high economic
and industry risk for banks operating in Uzbekistan.

"We consider state-owned banks' creditworthiness to be closely
linked to that of Uzbekistan (not rated). Therefore, we are
unlikely to raise the ratings on NBU over the next 12 months
unless our view of the sovereign's creditworthiness improves. We
view an upgrade driven by improvements in bank-specific factors
as unlikely over the next year.

"We could downgrade NBU over the next 12 months to reflect
heightened economic and industry risk, for example caused by a
deterioration of the sovereign's creditworthiness. A material
weakening of NBU's currently adequate asset quality, along with
deteriorating capitalization (with our projected RAC ratio
declining to below 3%) would put pressure on the bank's 'bb-'
stand-alone credit profile. However, we consider a downgrade to
be unlikely over the next 12 months."


===============
X X X X X X X X
===============


* BOOK REVIEW: Oil Business in Latin America: The Early Years
-------------------------------------------------------------
Author: John D. Wirth Ed.
Publisher: Beard Books
Softcover: 282 pages
List price: $34.95

Review by Gail Owens Hoelscher
Buy a copy for yourself and one for a colleague on-line at
http://is.gd/DvFouR
This book grew out of a 1981 meeting of the American Historical
Society. It highlights the origin and evolution of the stateowned
petroleum companies in Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, and
Venezuela.
Argentina was the first country ever to nationalize its
petroleum industry, and soon it was the norm worldwide, with the
notable exception of the United States. John Wirth calls this
phenomenon "perhaps in our century the oldest and most
celebrated of confrontations between powerful private entities
and the state."
The book consists of five case studies and a conclusion, as
follows:
* Jersey Standard and the Politics of Latin American Oil
Production, 1911-30 (Jonathan C. Brown)
* YPF: The Formative Years of Latin America's Pioneer State
Oil Company, 1922-39 (Carl E. Solberg)
* Setting the Brazilian Agenda, 1936-39 (John Wirth)
* Pemex: The Trajectory of National Oil Policy (Esperanza
Duran)
* The Politics of Energy in Venezuela (Edwin Lieuwen)
* The State Companies: A Public Policy Perspective (Alfred
H. Saulniers)

The authors assess the conditions at the time they were writing,
and relate them back to the critical formative years for each of
the companies under review. They also examine the four
interconnecting roles of a state-run oil industry and
distinguish them from those of a private company. First, is the
entrepreneurial role of control, management, and exploitation of
a nation's oil resources. Second, is production for the private
industrial sector at attractive prices. Third, is the
integration of plans for military, financial, and development
programs into the overall industrial policy planning process.
Finally, in some countries is the promotion of social
development by subsidizing energy for consumers and by promoting
the government's ideas of social and labor policy and labor
relations.

The author's approach is "conceptual and policy oriented rather
than narrative," but they provide a fascinating look at the
politics and development of the region. Mr. Brown provides a
concise history of the early years of the Standard Oil group and
the effects of its 1911 dissolution on its Latin American
operations, as well as power struggles with competitors and
governments that eventually nationalized most of its activities.
Mr. Solberg covers the many years of internal conflict over oil
policy in Argentina and YPF's lack of monopoly control over all
sectors of the oil industry. Mr. Wirth describes the politics
and individuals behind the privatization of Brazil's oil
industry leading to the creation of Petrobras in 1953. Mr. Duran
notes the wrangling between provinces and central government in
the evolution of Pemex, and in other Latin American countries.
Mr. Lieuwin discusses the mixed blessing that oil has proven for
Venezuela., creating a lopsided economy dependent on the ups and
downs of international markets. Mr. Saunders concludes that many
of the then-current problems of the state oil companies were
rooted in their early and checkered histories." Indeed, he says,
"the problems of the past have endured not because the public
petroleum companies behaved like the public enterprises they
are; they have endured because governments, as public owners,
have abdicated their responsibilities to the companies."
Jonh D. Wirth is Gildred Professor of Latin American Studies at
Standford University.



                            *********

Monday's edition of the TCR delivers a list of indicative prices
for bond issues that reportedly trade well below par.  Prices are
obtained by TCR editors from a variety of outside sources during
the prior week we think are reliable.  Those sources may not,
however, be complete or accurate.  The Monday Bond Pricing table
is compiled on the Friday prior to publication.  Prices reported
are not intended to reflect actual trades.  Prices for actual
trades are probably different.  Our objective is to share
information, not make markets in publicly traded securities.
Nothing in the TCR constitutes an offer or solicitation to buy or
sell any security of any kind.  It is likely that some entity
affiliated with a TCR editor holds some position in the issuers'
public debt and equity securities about which we report.

Each Tuesday edition of the TCR contains a list of companies with
insolvent balance sheets whose shares trade higher than US$3 per
share in public markets.  At first glance, this list may look
like the definitive compilation of stocks that are ideal to sell
short.  Don't be fooled.  Assets, for example, reported at
historical cost net of depreciation may understate the true value
of a firm's assets.  A company may establish reserves on its
balance sheet for liabilities that may never materialize.  The
prices at which equity securities trade in public market are
determined by more than a balance sheet solvency test.

Each Friday's edition of the TCR includes a review about a book
of interest to troubled company professionals.  All titles are
available at your local bookstore or through Amazon.com.  Go to
http://www.bankrupt.com/booksto order any title today.


                            *********


S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter-Europe is a daily newsletter co-
published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Fairless Hills,
Pennsylvania, USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, D.C., USA.
Marites O. Claro, Rousel Elaine T. Fernandez, Joy A. Agravante,
Julie Anne L. Toledo, Ivy B. Magdadaro, and Peter A. Chapman,
Editors.

Copyright 2018.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2754.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
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written permission of the publishers.

Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to
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The TCR Europe subscription rate is US$775 per half-year,
delivered via e-mail.  Additional e-mail subscriptions for
members of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription
or balance thereof are US$25 each.  For subscription information,
contact Peter Chapman at 215-945-7000.


                 * * * End of Transmission * * *