Countrywide is junk

That's not an editorial comment - just the latest credit rating from Standard & Poor's. The agency slashed the Calabasas-based mortgage lender's rating to "BB+/B," which falls into the category of a junk bond. The company is also being placed on S&P's credit watch. Here's the latest problem: Bank of America, which still plans to acquire Countrywide, said that it may not guarantee all of Countrywide's $38 billion in debt. That leaves debt holders potentially holding the bag. S&P noted a "new level of uncertainty as to the ultimate legal status of Countrywide's creditors after the merger." Being in junk bond terrain is not the end of the word (think of the returns!), but it does point to the company's sick financial condition.(AP)