JAPAN CORPORATE EARNINGS IN 2013 LIKELY TO BE MIXED, SAYS S&P REPORT

TOKYO - The earnings of Japan-based industrial corporations are likely to be a mixed bag in 2013, as was the case in 2012, with performance continuing to vary across sectors, says Standard & Poor's. “We believe pressure on our ratings on these companies remains strong in some industries given that the outlook on the long-tern corporate credit ratings is negative or the ratings are on CreditWatch with negative implications for over 30% of Japanese industrial companies we rate,” S&P says in a new report.