Asia Pacific

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Monday issued notice to debt-ridden air carrier SpiceJet over the plea filed by one of its operational creditors, the Times of India reported. A two-member NCLT bench, comprising Mahendra Khandelwal and Sanjeev Tanjan, has directed Spicejet to file a reply and list the matter for the next hearing on November 14. SpiceJet is already facing several insolvency petitions from creditors, including Willis Lease, Aircastle Ireland Ltd, Wilmington and Celestial Aviation at NCLT and the appellate tribunal NCLAT.

The NCLAT has set aside a petition filed by the state tax department claiming dues from Reliance Communications (RCom) observing that it was based on the assessment made after the initiation of insolvency resolution process against the debt-ridden firm, the Economic Times of India reported. A two-member NCLAT bench upheld the earlier order passed by the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), which had rejected the state tax department's second claim of Rs 6.10 crore. Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) against RCom was initiated on June 22, 2019.

Turkey’s central bank will probably discuss interest-rate cuts at its November meeting, but there is no pre-determined path for monetary policy and the decision will be driven by economic data between now and then, Bloomberg News reported. The bank will focus primarily on inflation, which authorities predict will gradually slow to 38% by the end of this year, compared with 52% in August, according to the person, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.

A legal change in the bonds that will emerge from a debt restructuring in the South Asian island of Sri Lanka could set a precedent for sovereign debt contracts, Bloomberg News reported. The country’s officials and its international bondholders have agreed to keep New York as the governing law of new notes to be issued under a $12.6 billion rework, but are introducing a mechanism that allows creditors to request a change to English or Delaware law, according to a government statement on Thursday.

The Centre could soon put in place a creditor-led insolvency resolution mechanism, largely involving out-of-court arrangements for even big loan defaulting firms, to ease the bankruptcy court burden and quicken recoveries for lenders, people aware of the development told the Economic Times of India. The new mechanism will stipulate a shorter deadline for resolution, likely 150 days, compared with the 270 days (including a 90-day extension) currently stipulated under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

Sri Lanka said that has reached an agreement in principle with bondholders to restructure about $12.6 billion in bonds, just two days before the country heads to elections that have rattled investors, Bloomberg News reported. The government and bondholders agreed on terms including a “27% haircut on the nominal amount of existing bonds,” according to a statement released Thursday at the conclusion of a third round of talks. A previous statement in July referred to a 28% haircut.

The administrator for Fiat Chrysler’s bankrupt Chinese venture failed to sell a jointly run auto factory in Southern China for a third time at auction, despite slashing the price by more than a third, indicating the lack of demand for internal combustion engines in the world’s largest car market, Bloomberg News reported. The equipment, buildings and other assets at the Changsha-based plant previously operated by Fiat Chrysler, now part of Stellantis NV., and partner Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. went under the gavel online starting on Tuesday, priced at 1.23 billion yuan ($174 million).

Taiwan’s central bank held interest rates steady with a watchful eye on inflation, declining to join the U.S. Federal Reserve and a growing number of its Asian counterparts in starting to ease monetary policy, the Wall Street Journal reported. The Central Bank of the Republic of China (Taiwan) kept its benchmark discount rate at 2.000% on Thursday, as expected in a poll of six analysts by The Wall Street Journal. It maintained its secured loan rate and unsecured loan rate at 2.375% and 4.250%, respectively.

Turkey’s central bank indicated it’s in no hurry to start cutting interest rates after leaving borrowing costs on hold for a sixth straight month, though suggested such a move is getting closer after dropping a reference to potential tightening, Bloomberg News reported. The Monetary Policy Committee, led by Governor Fatih Karahan, kept the one-week repo rate at 50% on Thursday. “Monetary policy tools will be used effectively in case a significant and persistent deterioration in inflation is foreseen,” the MPC said in a statement accompanying the decision.

Australia’s latest attempts to solve its housing crisis are stuck in political gridlock as the amount of available rental space in the nation hovers near a record low, Bloomberg News reported. A key piece of the center-left Labor government’s housing program is in limbo after opposition parties on Wednesday voted to defer for two months legislation that aims to help first home owners break into the market. The bill is for a shared equity scheme which would allow citizens to buy houses with a smaller deposit.