BROWN GROUP <BG> DEBT DOWNGRADED BY S/P
Standard and Poor's Corp said it
lowered 128 mln dlrs of Brown Group Inc's senior debt to
A-minus from A and commercial paper to A-2 from A-1.
    The agency said a decline in sales and profits were little
offset from the company's retail business. Also, foreign
producers eroded Brown's assets by gaining market share.
    Brown's debt ratio increased to 49.8 pct by year-end 1986
as higher inventories, and a four-year stock repurchase program
has required additional financing, S and P said.
    Restructuring efforts should improve productivity but not
in the forseeable future, the agency added.
 Reuter
