PARIS, Dec. 17 - Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has lowered to 'CC' from 'B' its long-term corporate credit rating on Ukrainian steel pipe producer Interpipe Ltd.

At the same time, the long-term rating on the company's senior unsecured debt was lowered to 'C' from 'B-', and the Ukrainian national scale rating to 'uaCC' from 'uaBBB'. The recovery rating on Interpipe's unsecured notes remains at '5', indicating the agency's expectation of modest (10%-30%) recovery in the event of a payment default. The outlook is negative.