HNA Group, one of China’s largest global asset buyers spawned from the country’s largest privately owned airline, will be divided into four parts, with each unit operating independently, according to a restructuring blueprint unveiled over the weekend, South China Morning Post reported. The development pushed the share price of its listed unit higher in Hong Kong.

Philippine Airlines has pledged 15 aircraft, replacement engines and frequent flyer miles as collateral to secure loans needed as part of its ongoing restructuring process, ch-aviation.com reported. This is according to a Sept. 17, 2021, notice of filings of additional restructuring support agreements (RSA) between Philippine Airlines and various counterparties with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York, where the airline is in voluntary chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings aimed at paring off USD2.1 billion of its USD6 billion in debts.

The recent surge in COVID-19 cases in Southeast Asia has throttled ports and locked down plantations and processors, sparking extended disruptions of raw materials such as palm oil, coffee and tin, the Wall Street Journal reported. Restrictions in Malaysia, the world’s second-largest producer of palm oil, have prevented migrant laborers from traveling to plantations, raising prices of the ubiquitous edible oil used to make candy bars, shampoo and biofuel. Lockdowns in Vietnam, the world’s No.

The editor-in-chief of state-backed Chinese newspaper Global Times warned debt-ridden property giant Evergrande Group that it should not bet on a government bailout on the assumption that it is "too big to fail," Reuters reported. It was the first commentary to appear in state-backed media casting doubt on a government bailout for the country's No.2 property developer, whose shares fell on Friday for the fifth consecutive day amid concerns it is heading for default.

In a rare plea, the chief judge at India’s bankruptcy appeals court petitioned the Supreme Court to let him work for three more days even after his term was cut short by the federal government, Bloomberg News reported. A.I.S. Cheema seeks three more days to enable him to give five verdicts and then retire, his lawyer told the Supreme Court Thursday. Cheema was, until last week, the acting chairman of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal due to retire Sept. 20, before the government abruptly named his replacement and cut short his term.

The World Bank is cancelling a prominent report on business conditions around the world after investigators found staff members were pressured by the bank’s leaders to alter data about China and some other governments, Aljazeera.com reported. The bank said on Thursday that it would discontinue “Doing Business” following an investigation prompted by internal reports of “data irregularities” in its 2018 and 2020 editions and possible “ethical matters” involving bank staff.

The ancient capital of Kyoto has long been a tourist mecca, attracting domestic and international travelers to its World Heritage-designated temples, shrines and rock gardens, The Japan Times reported. For centuries, Kyoto, home of the emperor, was a forbidden city, inaccessible to the outside world. Foreign travelers passing through Japan in the 17th through the 19th centuries were not allowed to step foot in it.

In yet another setback for Vedanta's plans to acquire debt-ridden Videocon Industries, lenders which had agreed to Twin Star Technologies' (TST) resolution plan want to reconsider it, citing up to 95% haircuts, Times Now News reported. National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has sought a reply from Vedanta's subsidiary TST on a request by a Bank of Maharashtra-led Committee of Creditors (CoC), which wants a fresh round of bidding for the resolution plan. NCLAT will consider CoC's request alleging low payout on Sept. 27 as TST sought time to reply.