S&P upgrades Ford Motor

Standard & Poor's said it raised its issuer credit ratings on Ford Motor Co. and Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC to BBB- from BB+ and revised the outlook on both companies to stable from positive.

The 3 recovery rating on Ford's senior unsecured debt was withdrawn because the agency does not assign recovery ratings to the issues of investment-grade companies.

S&P also raised the long-term counterparty credit rating on FCE Bank plc, Ford Credit's UK incorporated bank, to BBB from BBB-. The outlook on FCE's rating is negative, reflecting the negative trend that was assigned to U.K. banking industry risk.

"The upgrade reflects our expectation that Ford's credit measures will improve meaningfully as a result of its solid performance in North America and improved pension funding status, as well as our view that Ford's efforts to better diversify its profits across geographies are on track," S&P credit analyst Dan Picciotto said in a news release.

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