Asia Pacific

Moody's Investors Service warned Tuesday that it is placing Japan's sovereign debt ratings under review for a possible downgrade, as measures to reduce a yawning budget deficit are increasingly hamstrung by political infighting and an opposition bent on ousting the current government, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Workers at Whitcoulls and Borders bookstores have been forced to sign new contracts under duress, unions say. New Zealand-owned James Pascoe Group bought 57 Whitcoulls and five Borders stores for an undisclosed sum last week after the Australian-based owner REDgroup put itself into voluntary administration in February, Radio New Zealand reported. James Pascoe Group is a retail business owned by David and Anne Norman that employs 9000 staff throughout New Zealand and Australia.

Each new twist in Terry Serepisos' tortuous financial affairs could be putting his chances of a US$100 million rescue package at risk, Business Day reported. Two companies owned by Mr Serepisos were put into receivership yesterday, owing about $13m. Documents relating to bankruptcy action taken against him by FM Custodians, heard in the High Court at Wellington this month, suggest that a US$100m loan negotiated with Western Gulf Advisory can be altered whenever his financial circumstances change.

The proposed corporate debt restructuring (CDR) of at least five troubled Andhra Pradesh-based microfinance institutions (MFIs) is set to take off because banks might relax the stiff terms in the form of personal promoter guarantees, livemint.com reported. The deadline for completing the CDR process expires on 6 June.

Australian home loan delinquencies jumped to the highest on record in the first quarter, driven by Christmas spending, a November interest rate increase, and recent natural disasters, Fitch Ratings said, Bloomberg reported. Mortgages more than 30 days overdue rose to 1.79 percent of the nation’s residential mortgage backed securities in the quarter ended March 31, from 1.37 percent in the previous three months, according to the London-based ratings firm. The number of “low-doc” loans more than 30 days late climbed to a record 6.74 percent from 5.7 percent, according to the report.

Failed agribusiness Timbercorp's former directors must today face a class-action suit filed against them in 2009 by more than 2000 investors in the Supreme Court, the Financial Standard reported. The investors have made allegations of conflicts of interest, breaches of directors' duties, misleading conduct and other violations of the Corporations Act following the collapse of the company which went into voluntary administration in 2009 with a net debt of more than $900 million.

The foreign chief executive of embattled Tokyo Star Bank is likely to be asked to step down, people familiar with the discussions said on Monday, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. Robert M. Berardy, a rare foreign CEO at the helm of Japanese bank, will likely be asked to leave after creditors gain control of the bank from its current owner--private equity fund Advantage Partners LLC--according to the people. Masaru Irie, one of directors of the bank and its chief administrative officer, will likely be promoted to the bank's president, the people said.

Self-described real estate king Don Ha is back running his former real estate and property management company that tipped into receivership in March, with $7 million in debt owed to Kiwibank, BusinessDay reported. Top One - a company owned by his family and friends and which he is a director of - were the successful bidders for buying the Manukau real estate agency from the receivers for $1.35m and it is now thought to be operating under the Rental One brand.

South Canterbury Finance receivers have announced the sale of subsidiary Face Finance to GE Capital. A statement issued by McGrathNicol did not disclose a price, but said the acquisition involved "over $100 million of commercial loan book assets", The National Business Review reported. At the time of receivership South Canterbury had advanced $196.84 million to Face. A purchase price was not disclosed, but according to the receivers first report Face had a loan book totalling $205.4 million, with $8.5 million impairments.

The Norman family are said to be close to clinching a deal to buy the Whitcoulls bookstore chain but have had to rethink part of the sales agreement. Whitcoulls, owned by REDgroup Retail, was put into voluntary administration in February and in March was being marketed for sale. BusinessDay understands the deal was close to being wrapped up but may stall over possibly one or more conditions. Sydney-based administrator Ferrier Hodgson would not comment on progress.