Fitch Assigns Negative Outlook to PHH

The long- and short-term issuer default ratings of PHH Corp., Mt. Laurel, N.J., have been affirmed by Fitch Ratings, but a negative rating outlook has been assigned. The company's long-term IDR stands at BBB-plus, and the short-term IDR is F2. The negative outlook was assigned (and the ratings were removed from Rating Watch Evolving) after PHH's announcement that it had terminated a merger agreement with General Electric Capital Corp. "Recent weakness in the company's mortgage unit has been offset by PHH's fleet leasing business, which has performed well," Fitch said. "Fitch believes, however, that the mortgage industry remains challenging and highly uncertain." Fitch can be found online at http://www.fitchratings.com, and PHH can be found at http://www.phh.com.