Moody's Downgrade - ITW

Moody's Investors Service said Tuesday it downgraded ITW because of lower operating margins. Moody's cut Illinois Tool's senior unsecured debt rating to A1 from Aa3. The outlook is negative. About $3.6 billion of debt is affected. "The downgrade of the senior unsecured rating follows the sharp decline in operating margins that occurred in the 2008 fourth quarter," said Jonathan Root, a Moody's analyst, in a statement. End of Story