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From “A-/Outlook positive” to “A/Outlook stable”: Standard&Poor–s upgrades its rating for Knorr-Bremse

Standard & Poor?s has raised its creditworthiness rating for Knorr-Bremse from “A-/Outlook positive” to “A/Outlook stable”. With this upgrade, the rating agency is honoring the continuity of the Group?s performance, the strengthening of its compet-itive position ? not least through investments in research and development ? and the substantial growth of the Group through acquisitions and joint ventures.
This rating puts Knorr-Bremse among the top-placed automobile, commercial vehicle and rail verhicle suppliers worldwide. Only last year, Standard & Poor?s upped its rating for Knorr-Bremse from A-/Outlook stable to A-/Outlook positive. The Group?s performance in the 2015 financial year played a major part in securing the latest upgrade to A/Outlook sta-ble. “This decision only goes to reaffirm our conviction that, alongside technical and opera-tional excellence, it invariably takes a stable financial basis to ensure sustained success in the various markets,” said Dr. Lorenz Zwingmann, CFO Knorr-Bremse AG.
The key factors that influenced the rating agency?s decision were the Group?s sound finan-cial policy and its stable cash flow generation over many years. The targeted expansion of Knorr-Bremse?s presence on the ground, with companies in all important countries and markets, was also highlighted as one of the Group?s strengths, as was the balanced spread of sales revenues between the rail vehicle and commercial vehicle businesses. These two business areas are subject to economic cycles that take very different courses in terms of time and region and can thus offset one another. By expanding its service offering in both areas, Knorr-Bremse can also mitigate the impact of cyclical events in its OEM business as a whole.

Knorr-Bremse is the world–s leading manufacturer of braking systems for rail and commercial vehicles, with sales totaling almost ?6 billion in 2015. In over 30 countries, some 25,000 employees develop, manufacture, and service braking, entrance, control, and energy supply systems, HVAC and driver assistance systems, as well as powertrain and transmission control solutions. As a technology leader, for more than 110 years now, through its products the company has been making a decisive contribution to greater safety by road and rail. Every day, more than one billion people around the world put their trust in systems made by Knorr-Bremse.