BANKING
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
S&P; Downgrades First Interstate: The New York ratings agency, citing growing loan problems at the Los Angeles bank and the ongoing effort to cut costs, lowered its ratings on debt for First Interstate Bancorp and its affiliates. About $3 billion in debt is affected. S&P; said emerging loan problems in First Interstate’s California, Nevada and Oregon banks are a setback to its efforts to turn itself around, adding that it expects loan problems to continue to worsen in California.
