Steven Hess, Moody's lead analyst for the United States, said the battles in Washington over debt and deficits meant 2011 had not been "one of the better years."

But the rating agency factors the long-term view of America's political and financial institutions into its top-notch AAA rating on the country's debt.

"We still believe the U.S. has institutions that over time have proven themselves resilient," Hess told the Reuters Washington Summit.

"You have had divided government in the past, from time to time. We're in a period like that right now. But is it going to last forever? Are the institutions in the U.S. fundamentally flawed? I don't think so."

Attempts to halt the growth of the U.S. public debt, which stands at more than $14 trillion, have made limited progress with the House of Representatives under Republican control while the Democrats run the Senate.

Moody's has warned it could yet downgrade the United States but Hess said the country has greater leeway than other countries to incur higher levels of debt, because of the dominant role of the U.S. dollar in global markets. That helps keep demand strong for Treasury bonds and pushes U.S. interest rates lower than would be the case in other countries with similar fiscal challenges.

"The dollar is the preferred storer of value. As a global benchmark, the U.S. Treasury is unrivaled. We don't see that changing any time soon."

Moody's is looking at multiple factors before determining whether America's rating might be downgraded and has signaled that the agency could wait at least until 2013 before making a decision. That stands in contrast with Standard & Poor's which downgraded the U.S. rating by one notch in August after Congress came up with only a limited debt reduction deal.

"Volatility is not good and the market doesn't want that in the ratings. For a triple-A rating, our time frame has to be quite long term," Hess told Reuters.

S&P cited the partisan nature of Washington politics and its lack of faith in the U.S. Congress to tackle America's huge national debt as a major reason for its downgrade.

Hess said: "We tend to look not at all of the noise and everything that goes into this process, but what are the results."

Despite the rancorous atmosphere in Washington this year, Hess said, the debt ceiling was eventually raised and the Budget Control Act passed, which produced nearly $1 trillion in spending cuts and created the bipartisan congressional debt "super committee". The panel is tasked with finding at least $1.2 trillion in further savings over the next decade.

"I think that was a positive move in terms of the long-term fiscal outlook," Hess said. "And that was the result of all the divisive debate among the parties during the summer."

Even if the super committee fails to reach a deal by its November 23 deadline, Hess said it would not be a decisive factor in the review of the United States' credit rating which would look at a range of issues including the 2013 budget and the outcome of next year's elections.

Men Across America Sign Up to Grow Moustaches and Change the Face of Men's Health

LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwired - October 28, 2014) - With Movember right around the corner, Americans are marking their calendars to "Shave the Date." The Movember Foundation, the leading global organization committed to changing the face of men's health, is getting ready to officially kick off the 2014 campaign on November 1st by engaging men to shave clean and start growing a moustache, and only a moustache, for 30 days. Movember moustaches spark conversations and raise funds for prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health.

Men and women can join the global movement by signing up at Movember.com. Men will start November 1 -- also known as Shave the Date: Movember 1st -- clean-shaven and grow only the moustache for 30 days, getting friends, family and colleagues to donate to their moustache-growing efforts. Women can also get involved by recruiting the men in their lives to grow moustaches, donate, fundraise, plan and participate in Movember events. Local Shave the Date events will be held all over the US to kick off the moustache movement.

"Growing a moustache in Movember symbolizes a commitment to improving the state of men's health," said Mark Hedstrom, US Director for Movember. "The Movember community in 2014 will act locally but think globally by raising funds and awareness while encouraging those around them to take action and change the world."

The Movember Foundation also announced this year, the largest ever-global investment to improve the quality of life for men living with prostate cancer through the launch of their new program, True NTH. To date, the Movember community of over 4 million men and women in 21 countries has raised over $550 million to date for the purpose of saving and improving the lives of men affected by prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health problems.

Details about the more than 800 programs that Movember has funded can be found on the funded programs page on Movember.com.

For more information, please visit Movember.com. Connect with Movember on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, flickr, and Pinterest.

Sign up and join the largest men's health movement at Movember.com.

About the Movember Foundation

The Movember Foundation's vision is to have an everlasting impact on the face of men's health. We do this by getting men to grow moustaches during Movember (the month formerly known as November) to spark conversation and raise funds for prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health. Together with the Movember community we have raised over $550 million, and have funded over 800 world-class programs in 21 countries. We're committed to changing the face of men's health and won't stop growing as long as serious men's health issues remain.

Movember is fully accredited by the Better Business Bureau, and for the past two years, has been named a Top 100 best NGO by The Global Journal. For more information please visit Movember.com. Movember is a registered 501(c)(3) charity.

Contact information:Abbie Rumery Movember310-450-3331abbie@movember.com Chad GrossmanEdelman PR323-202-1464 (office)chad.grossman@edelman.com

Fitch Ratings has affirmed Unum Group Inc.'s (NYSE:UNM) holding company ratings, including the senior debt rating at 'BBB'. In addition, Fitch affirms the Insurer Financial Strength (IFS) ratings for of all of UNM's domestic operating subsidiaries at 'A'. The Rating Outlook is Stable. A full list of ratings follows at the end of this release.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

The rating rationale includes the following: UNM's overall operating performance, which has remained strong despite continued adverse global economic conditions; conservative investment portfolio; solid capital and liquidity at both the insurance subsidiary and holding company levels; the company's leadership position in the U.S. employee benefits market; and increased diversification. Offsetting these positives are Unum U.K.'s somewhat stagnant recent results and continued challenges UNM faces in managing its run-off long-term care book of business, particularly in the current low interest rate environment.

The Stable Outlook reflects Fitch's belief that while UNM's premium growth and operating margins continue to be challenged by the weak economic environment and competitive market conditions, the company's overall profitability will continue to support the current rating. Operating margins in UNM's U.S. disability business have held up better than Fitch's expectations, and they have favorable relative to the company's peers. The company has been experiencing an improving trend in the benefit ratio of its core U.S. group disability income business over the past year and a half, which has helped support the company's overall profitability.

While Unum U.K. results have shown deterioration, particularly within the group life segment, the company has taken steps to improve results going forward including implementing significant rate increases and claims management improvements while reducing its focus on the large case market. Unum U.K. also entered into a 50% coinsurance arrangement effective Jan. 1, 2013 designed to reduce earnings volatility and capital requirements. While these measures appear to have halted deterioration in the unit's operating profitability, persistency has suffered, particularly in the U.K. group life segment.

During 2013, UNM repurchased $319 million of its shares, down from $501 million in 2012. Fitch's expectation is that further share repurchases will be funded through operating earnings to mitigate the impact on financial leverage and the capitalization of the operating subsidiaries. Further, Fitch generally views measured stock repurchase as a more prudent use of capital than acquisitions or premium growth in a soft rate environment.

UNM's financial leverage was 25% at March 31, 2014. Fitch considers the company's debt service capacity to be strong for the rating level with GAAP earnings based interest coverage of 9.5x in 2013. Holding company liquidity, including an intermediate holding company, totaled $820 million at March 31, 2014. UNM reported consolidated risk-based capital of its U.S. insurance subsidiaries 403% at Dec. 31, 2013, which is at the high end of management's near to intermediate term target of 375% - 400%.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

The key rating triggers that could lead to an upgrade include:

--Improved general economic conditions including a growth in employment, salaries and disposable income which enable UNM to achieve its long-term target of 5% - 7% annual earnings growth on its core operations.

--GAAP earnings-based interest coverage over 12x and statutory maximum allowable dividend coverage of interest expense over 5x.

--U.S. risk-based capital ratio above 400% and run-rate financial leverage below 20%.

Key rating triggers that could lead to a downgrade include:

--Deterioration in financial results that includes an increase in the U.S. group

disability benefit ratio over 87%, GAAP earnings-based interest coverage falling below 8x, and statutory maximum allowable dividend interest expense coverage falling below 3x. --Any additional reserve strengthening charges in the near term;

--Holding company cash falls below management's target of approximately 1x fixed charges (interest expense plus common stock dividend), or roughly $290 million.

--U.S. risk-based capital ratio below 350% and financial leverage above 25%.Fitch affirms the following ratings with a Stable Outlook:

Unum Group Inc.

--Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at 'BBB+';

--7.125% senior notes due Sept. 30, 2016 at 'BBB';

--7% senior notes due July 15, 2018 at 'BBB';

--5.625% senior notes due Sept. 15, 2020 at 'BBB';

--4.00% senior notes due March 15, 2024 at BBB;

--7.25% senior notes due March 15, 2028 at 'BBB';

--6.75% senior notes due Dec. 15, 2028 at 'BBB';

--7.375% senior notes due June 15, 2032 at 'BBB'

--5.75% senior notes due Aug. 15, 2042 at 'BBB'.

Provident Financing Trust I

--7.405% junior subordinated capital securities at 'BB+'.

UnumProvident Finance Company plc,

--6.85% senior notes due Nov. 15, 2015 at 'BBB'.

Unum Group members:

Unum Life Insurance Company of America

Provident Life & Accident Insurance Company

Provident Life and Casualty Insurance Company

The Paul Revere Life Insurance Company

The Paul Revere Variable Annuity Insurance Company

First Unum Life Insurance Company

Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company

--IFS at 'A'.

PR Newswire

SAN FRANCISCO, June 3, 2014

SAN FRANCISCO, June 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Prologis, Inc. (NYSE: PLD), the global leader in industrial real estate, today announced the pricing of Real Estate Trust Certificates (Certificados Bursatiles Fiduciarios Inmobiliarios or "CBFIs") of FIBRA Prologis, a public real estate investment trust in Mexico.

FIBRA Prologis priced its 258,000,000 CBFIs at 27 pesos per CBFI. The offering, which provides an option to purchase additional CBFIs within 30 days of the closing, is expected to close on or about June 9, 2014, subject to customary closing conditions.

FIBRA Prologis' Class-A portfolio totals 29.7 million square feet (2.8 million square meters) and includes 177 logistics and manufacturing facilities in Mexico.

FIBRA Prologis will serve as the company's long-term investment vehicle in Mexico. The FIBRA will have the right of first refusal on Prologis-developed properties, and wholly owned subsidiaries of Prologis will serve as the property and asset manager for FIBRA Prologis.

This announcement is not an offer of securities for sale in the United States or any other jurisdiction. Any securities issued by FIBRA Prologis have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Securities may not be offered or sold in the United States unless they are registered or exempt from registration. This press release is for information purposes only, and includes only information that is publicly available. Potential investors interested in acquiring securities issued by FIBRA Prologis in Mexico should not rely on the information contained in this press release, and should only rely on the information contained in the preliminary prospectus or the definitive prospectus published in the web page of the Mexican National Banking and Securities Commission (Comision Nacional Bancaria y de Valores) at www.cnbv.gob.mx and the Mexican Securities Exchange (Bolsa Mexicana de Valores, S.A.B. de C.V.) at www.bmv.com.mx when making an investment decisions in such securities.

ABOUT PROLOGIS Prologis, Inc., is the leading owner, operator and developer of industrial real estate, focused on global and regional markets across the Americas, Europe and Asia. As of March 31, 2014, Prologis owned or had investments in, on a wholly owned basis or through co-investment ventures, properties and development projects expected to total approximately 574 million square feet (53.3 million square meters) in 21 countries. The company leases modern distribution facilities to more than 4,700 customers, including manufacturers, retailers, transportation companies, third-party logistics providers and other enterprises.

The statements in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the industry and markets in which Prologis operates, management's beliefs and assumptions made by management. Such statements involve uncertainties that could significantly impact Prologis' financial results. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements, which generally are not historical in nature. All statements that address operating performance, events or developments that we expect or anticipate will occur in the future — including statements relating to rent and occupancy growth, development activity and changes in sales or contribution volume of properties, disposition activity, general conditions in the geographic areas where we operate, our debt and financial position, our ability to form new co-investment ventures and the availability of capital in existing or new co-investment ventures — are forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Although we believe the expectations reflected in any forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be attained and therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in such forward-looking statements. Some of the factors that may affect outcomes and results include, but are not limited to: (i) national, international, regional and local economic climates, (ii) changes in financial markets, interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates, (iii) increased or unanticipated competition for our properties, (iv) risks associated with acquisitions, dispositions and development of properties, (v) maintenance of real estate investment trust ("REIT") status and tax structuring, (vi) availability of financing and capital, the levels of debt that we maintain and our credit ratings, (vii) risks related to our investments in our co-investment ventures and funds, including our ability to establish new co-investment ventures and funds, (viii) risks of doing business internationally, including currency risks, (ix) environmental uncertainties, including risks of natural disasters, and (x) those additional factors discussed in reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by Prologis under the heading "Risk Factors." Prologis undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements appearing in this document.

SOURCE Prologis, Inc.

PR Newswire

SAN FRANCISCO, June 10, 2014

SAN FRANCISCO, June 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Sollega, a leading manufacturer of commercial flat-roof PV solar racking, introduces a new light-weight ballasted hybrid roof-mount solution in partnership with BASF, one of the largest global suppliers of plastics. The new FastRack510 (FR510) is manufactured with the advanced plastic Ultramid®, engineered to weather extreme rooftop conditions, and weighs only 4.5 pounds. The FR510's lightweight material and streamlined design reduces overall project costs while maintaining system reliability.

As equipment costs for solar projects fall, soft costs play a more prominent role in determining solar system prices. According to a recent National Renewable Energy Laboratory study, soft costs are now the largest component of commercial solar project pricing, primarily driven by labor and supply chain costs.

"Commercial installers are very focused on soft costs so we designed the FR510 to simplify the installation process and meet strict new codes and flammability standards like UL 2703," said Elie Rothschild, CEO of Sollega. "The FR510 significantly cuts down installation costs and time with its universal one-piece, stackable design. It arrives at the project site fully assembled and accommodates any type of module at 5 and 10 degree tilt angles."

The lightweight, one-piece, stackable design simplifies project logistics by keeping part counts low and enabling half a megawatt of racking materials to fit in a standard 40-foot-long shipping container. The new FR510 is an improvement over the proven FastRack5 by reducing weight and increasing fire resistance while maintaining the simple design.

"Ultramid® from BASF has been used for over 40 years in very demanding applications, like automobile components, where it maintains its strength for years even after it's exposed to rain, chemicals, sunlight, and vibrations," said Hung Pham, Solar Market Manager at BASF. The glass-reinforced nylon with built-in UV inhibitor allows for each mount to hold over 200 times its own weight and retain its strength despite intense weathering over the lifetime of the product.

"When we're installing multi-megawatt projects, it's important to keep the parts count low and reduce steps whenever possible without sacrificing performance," said John Hostetter, VP of Engineering at REC Solar. "As a leading project developer working across the country, we need solutions that work for our clients from New York to Hawaii. We have partnered with Sollega on select projects because of their high quality and ease of installation."

About Sollega

Founded in 2009, Sollega specializes in the design and manufacturing of ballasted commercial flat-roof and ground mount racking solutions. Sollega's mission is to provide the easiest to install and most cost-effective solar mounting solution available. Sollega is the first company to introduce polymers in U.S. commercial racking. The company continues to develop the simplest solar mounting systems on the market – reducing labor, time and project costs. www.sollega.com.

SOURCE Sollega