Fitch: Braskem unchanged

Fitch Ratings said it views Braskem SA's recent news that it will sell assets related to its water treatment unit and its 54.2% stake at Cetrel SA for about R$652 million as neutral to the company's credit ratings.

Braskem has a long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating of BBB-, long-term local-currency issuer default rating of BBB-, long-term national rating rating of AA+(bra) and BBB- rating on its unsecured senior notes due 2014 and 2017.

Braskem International has a long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating of BBB- and BBB- rating on its unsecured senior notes due in 2015.

Braskem Finance Ltd. has a long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating of BBB-, BBB- rating on its unsecured senior notes due 2018, 2020 and 2021 and BBB- on its unsecured senior perpetual bonds.

Braskem America Finance Co. has a long-term local- and foreign-currency issuer default rating of BBB- and BBB- rating on its unsecured senior notes due 2041.

The outlook is negative.

The ratings already incorporate the company's goal to seek proactive measures to reduce its leverage, Fitch said.

The asset sale is strategically positive as it reinforces the company's commitment to a deleverage process and to its strategy of focusing on its petrochemical core business, the agency said.

Nevertheless, Braskem still faces challenges to recover its operating cash flow generation and to effectively sustain a deleverage process in order to avoid the current negative pressure on its ratings, Fitch added.

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