| SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 |
| FORM 6-K |
| Report of Foreign Issuer Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16 |
| of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 |
| [March 3, 2004] |
| Metso Corporation
(Translation of registrant’s name into English) Fabianinkatu 9 A, PO Box 1220 FIN-00101 Helsinki, Finland |
| Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F |
| Form 20-F [X] Form 40-F [ ] |
| Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. |
| Yes [ ] No [X] |
| If “Yes” is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in connection with Rule 12g-32(b):82-____________ |
| SIGNATURES |
| Date March 3, 2004 |
| Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf of the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized. |
| Name: |
| Olli Vaartimo Executive Vice President and CFO Metso Corporation |
Harri Luoto Senior Vice President, General Counsel Metso Corporation |
| RATINGS ON METSO CORPORATION DOWNGRADED BY STANDARD & POOR’S |
| (Helsinki, Finland, March 3, 2004) — Metso Corporation (NYSE: MX; HEX: MEO) Standard & Poor’s Rating Services has lowered Metso’s corporate credit rating to BB+ from BBB, and considers the outlook on ratings to be stable. Additionally, the ratings of Metso’s outstanding bonds and EMTN program were lowered to BB from BBB. At the same time, the short-term rating was lowered to B from A-3. All ratings were removed from Credit Watch. |
| Metso Corporation is a global supplier of process industry machinery and systems, as well as know-how and aftermarket services. The Corporation’s core businesses are fiber and paper technology (Metso Paper), rock and mineral processing (Metso Minerals) and automation and control technology (Metso Automation). In 2003, the net sales of Metso Corporation were EUR 4.3 billion and the personnel totaled approximately 27,400. Metso Corporation is listed on the Helsinki and New York Stock Exchanges. |
| For additional information, please contact: Pekka Hölttä, Senior Vice President, Corporate Treasurer, Metso Corporation, tel. +358 20 484 3195 |
| or |
| Helena Aatinen, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications, Metso Corporation, tel. +358 20 484 3004 USA: Mike Phillips, Senior Vice President, Finance and Administration, Metso USA, Inc., tel. +1 617 369 7850. |