Recently in Ratings Category

Evolution Securities has today described the UK commercial property sector as a "bull market in a china shop".
In a sector note, analyst Harry Stokes says: "Too few
assets on the market and widespread demand at home and abroad is driving
property yields down, all within the context of a fragile economic environment.
"No one seems to agree on what happens when Quantitative Easing ends, but everyone agrees that monetary policy won't be tightened soon.
"Until then, UK real estate yields 7.2% while cash yields near zero; the UK lease structure ensures rents can't fall while the occupier remains solvent; and the weakness of Sterling ensures that the UK remains a focus for overseas investors."

Ratings agency Moody's spent the end of last week combing through the various commercial mortgage-backed securities debt packages, if the glut of e-mails on potential downgrades I received this morning is anything to go by.

Most interesting were a couple potential downgrades of class A bonds secured against shopping centres owned by Liberty International, including £628m of debt secured against the flagship Lakeside shopping centre in Essex.