CDX indexes to include Fitch ratings

By Michelle Anderson

Rochester, N.H., March 8 - The CDX indexes will include Fitch Ratings' evaluations as part of their tests for inclusion in the credit derivative benchmark beginning March 20.

The addition will make the index more "robust," by having ratings from all three agencies, said Brad Levy, managing director of the Firmwide eBusiness Group at Goldman Sachs and acting chairman of CDS IndexCo LLC, in a press release.

The same ratings from two of the three will be used to classify a product. For instance, a junk rating from two of the agencies will result in a high yield rating, according to a CDX spokesperson.

The change will allow investors to have a consensus of opinion when making decisions, said James Jockle, a spokesperson for Fitch Ratings. Part of the reason Fitch is being included now, said Jockle, is that Fitch has more robust market coverage today than it had 10 years ago.

CDX IndexCo is a consortium of 16 investment banks licensed to be market makers.

Fitch Ratings is a New York-based rating agency.

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