Standard&Poor's Ratings Services downgraded 185 issuers and upgraded 112 globally in first-quarter 2012. The 185 downgraded issuers had a total of $3.2 (€2.4) trillion in rated debt, and the 112 upgraded entities accounted for $315 (€240) billion in rated debt. The financial sector and sovereigns, especially in Europe, remain weak, and U.S. financials continue to fear the effects of another sovereign default in Europe. Barring such an event, we expect global credit quality to continue stabilizing, though it isn't likely to improve considerably in any region in the short-term. Europe accounted for the greatest number of downgrades in the first quarter by issuer-count, with 79 issuers, followed by the U.S. (67 issuers), the emerging markets (25 issuers), and
