S&P lifts Hanaro Telecom from junk

Standard & Poor's said it raised Hanaro Telecom Inc.'s long-term corporate credit rating and senior unsecured debt to BBB- from BB following SK Telecom Co. Ltd.'s (A/stable) takeover of Hanaro following its acquisition of a 38.9% stake in the company from the AIG-Newbridge-TVG consortium.

The ratings were removed from CreditWatch with positive implications, where they were placed on Nov. 15, and the outlook is positive.

The agency said the upgrade was based on an expected improvement in Hanaro's credit risk profile due to anticipated support from the parent company, as well as an improving financial risk profile achieved through debt reduction in the past couple of years.

The positive outlook reflects S&P's expectation that there is room for Hanaro's business to grow and that its financial risk profile could be improved from the currently assumed level if significant synergies between SK Telecom and Hanaro materialize.

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