By Melissa Mott
NEW YORK, Aug 29 (IFR) - The cost of insuring VerizonCommunication's debt against default rose on Thursday afterVodafone Group said it was in talks with the company to sell its45% stake in their U.S. joint venture Verizon Wireless.
Verizon's five-year credit default swaps widened around 20%,or 14.5bp, to 85.5bp on the news, breaking out of a range of55-75bp over the past six months.
Verizon is working with several banks to raise USD10bln fromeach to finance about USD60bln of the deal and an announcementcould come as soon as Sept. 2, two sources told Bloomberg. Therewere hints of a possible deal back in April of this year.
Vodafone (VOD)