Fitch Ratings Affirms STEERS 2004 R-F.NEW YORK New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of -- Fitch Ratings Fitch Ratings An international rating agency for financial institutions, insurance companies, and corporate, sovereign, and municipal debt. Fitch Ratings has headquarters in New York and London and is wholly owned by FIMALAC of Paris. affirms the rating of the Debt Units of Medium-Term Structured Enhanced Return Trust 2004 series R-F (STEERS) at 'BBB'. E[acute accent acute accent n. A mark (´) indicating: a. that a vowel is close or tense, as é in French été. b. that a vowel or syllable has a high or rising pitch, as in Chinese or Ancient Greek. c. ]STEERS, which closed on Jan. 15, 2004, is a single name credit linked note that enables investors to gain exposure to an obligation of Ford Motor Company. The 'BBB' rating is based on the ratings of Ford Motor Co. (rated 'BBB' by Fitch), Merrill Lynch Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (NYSE: MER TYO: 8675 ), through its subsidiaries and affiliates, provides capital markets services, investment banking and advisory services, wealth management, asset management, insurance, banking and related products and services on a global basis. & Co., Inc. ('AA-/F1+'), Merrill Lynch Derivatives Products AG (rated 'AAA'), and the legal structure of the transaction. E[acute accent]On the closing date, STEERS entered into a fixed-for-fixed interest rate swap Interest Rate Swap A deal between banks or companies where borrowers switch floating-rate loans for fixed rate loans in another country. These can be either the same or different currencies. with Merrill Lynch Capital Services, Inc., that allowed the Debt Unitholders to receive quarterly distributions of interest instead of the semi-annual interest payments of the Ford obligation. Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. is the swap guarantor and Merrill Lynch Derivatives Products AG is the guarantor of the swap breakage fee, if any. E[acute accent]Fitch will continue to monitor and review this transaction for future rating adjustments. Additional deal information and historical data are available on the Fitch Ratings web site at www.fitchratings.com. For more information on the Fitch Vector Model, see 'Global Rating Criteria for Collateralised Debt Obligations,' dated Sept. 13, 2004 and also available at www.fitchratings.com. |
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