Marconi rating cut as loan talks start

MARCONI'S debt problems were compounded when leading credit worthiness specialist Standard & Poor's lowered its long-term corporate credit rating on the group to single B-plus from double B.

The electronics-to-telecoms group was meeting its 31 creditor banks, led by HSBC and Barclays, to negotiate a new credit line of £3bn, expected to mature in late

2005. Its current £1.8bn loan book expires in March 2003.

Negotiations on the new loan were already hampered by poor third-quarter results reported last week. Sales dropped 37%, and the company announced 4,000 job cuts on top of 9,000 axed last year.