Two ABS upgrades
Standard & Poor's raised its ratings on the class B, C, D, and E notes issued by Illawarra Series 2007-1 CMBS Trust to 'AAA', 'AA', 'A-' and 'BB+' from 'AA', 'A', 'BBB' and 'BB', respectively. At the same time, it affirmed the 'AAA' rating on the class A notes.The underlying assets of the trust have displayed strong performance over the life of the transaction, with historically low levels of arrears. Currently there are no loans in arrears for more than 30 days. The cumulative losses experienced to date form 0.1 per cent of the original portfolio balance, and have been covered by excess spread. About 40 per cent of the loan balance has been paid down to date.S&P also raised the ratings on the Class B and C notes issued by Liberty Series 2007-1 Auto Trust to 'AAA' and 'A+' from 'A' and 'BBB+', respectively. The ratings on the Class A and D notes were affirmed at 'AAA' and 'BB'. There has been an increase in the percentage of credit support provided to each class of notes as the portfolio continues to amortise - 70 per cent has been paid down to date. In addition, the excess spread (equal to 10 per cent of the pool balance) that has accumulated in a reserve account and the expected portfolio spread will provide a buffer to cover future losses.