Standard & Poor's U.S. speculative-grade composite credit spread, on the other hand, tightened to 780 bps, one basis point short of the widest spread seen since March 21, 2008, when the spread was 801 bps. By comparison, Friday's spread is 35% wider than the start of the year and 83% wider than the five-year moving average. The speculative-grade credit spread is poised for continued volatility, commensurate with an escalation in speculative-grade defaults over the course of this year.
By rating category, Standard & Poor's 'AA' composite spread, yesterday's biggest mover, widened to 239 bps, followed by the 'BBB' spread, which widened to 321 bps.
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