OREANDA-NEWS. S&P Global Ratings today said it lowered its corporate rating on Sunnyvale, Calif.-based chip manufacturer Fairchild Semiconductor International Inc. to 'BB' (the same as our corporate credit rating on ON Semiconductor Corp.) from 'BB+' and removed it from CreditWatch, where we had placed it with negative implications on Nov. 18, 2015. The outlook is stable.

We then withdrew our corporate credit rating on Fairchild following the completion of its merger with ON Semiconductor at the issuer's request.

"The rating action follows the closing of the merger of Fairchild and ON Semiconductor," said S&P Global Ratings credit analyst Tuan Duong.

Fairchild will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of ON Semiconductor and we believe that it will become core to ON Semiconductor in accordance with our group rating methodology. Thus, we equalize the corporate credit rating on Fairchild with that of the parent, ON Semiconductor, at 'BB'. In our view, Fairchild is highly unlikely to be sold by ON Semiconductor, is successful at its business, has a long-term commitment from ON Semiconductor management, and operates in a business segment that is integral to ON Semiconductor's overall strategy. In connection with the merger, ON Semiconductor refinanced Fairchild's unrated $400 million revolver expiring in 2019.