Standard & Poor's (S&P) has raised its outlook on Italcementi and its French subsidiary Ciments Francais to positive from stable. The BB/B ratings are affirmed.

The outlook revision follows the completion of the rating's agency's review of HeidelbergCement's plans to purchase Italmobiliare's 45 per cent shareholding in Italcementi for approximately EUR1.67bn, announced in July 2015.

S&P believes that the combined group's credit profile will likely be higher than that of Italcementi on a stand-alone basis. That is because it will benefit from a significantly wider geographic diversification and absolute size in the sector.