. the majority of international paper 2019s debt is accessed through global public capital markets where we have a wide base of investors . maintaining an investment grade credit rating is an important element of international paper 2019s financing strategy . at december 31 , 2009 , the company held long-term credit ratings of bbb ( negative outlook ) and baa3 ( negative outlook ) and short-term credit ratings of a-3 and p-3 by s&p and moody 2019s , respectively