BHP has room to answer doubters as commodities rout batters debt

Sydney

BHP Billiton Ltd's debt has scope to rebound if Chief Executive Officer Andrew Mackenzie can stick to his pledge to maintain a "solid A" credit rating for the world's biggest miner.

A plunge in metal and energy prices this month drove the cost of protecting BHP bonds with credit-default swaps to levels unseen since 2009 and the company is priced as the fourth- riskiest in the 25-member iTraxx Australia index. It's more expensive to insure than borrowers such as retailer Woolworths Ltd, rated three steps lower than the miner.