Canada

Sino-Forest Corp., the Chinese timber company fending off allegations of fraud, said it reached a waiver agreement with bondholders, reducing the risk of bankruptcy, Bloomberg reported. Holders of a majority in principal of its senior notes due 2014 and 2017 agreed to waive the default arising from the company’s failure to release its third-quarter financial results on time, Hong Kong- and Mississauga, Ontario-based Sino-Forest said today in a statement.

Canada’s unemployment rate rose for a third month in December, the longest advance in two years, as a gain in jobs trailed growth of the labor force, Bloomberg reported. The jobless rate increased to 7.5 percent from November’s 7.4 percent and the recent low of 7.1 percent in September, Statistics Canada said today in Ottawa. Employment rose by 17,500, the first gain in three months. Over the past six months, the number of jobs has grown by 7,400, compared with a gain of 191,800 in the first half of 2011.

Homburg Invest Inc. has filed a formal objection to a decision by the Dutch securities regulator to revoke its investment licence in the country, CanadianBusiness.com reported. The Halifax-headquartered company, which is under creditor protection, said Thursday that it plans to consider all legal steps to challenge the decision made in late November which prevents it from issuing new equity in the Netherlands.

Canadian silicon producer Timminco Ltd filed for protection from creditors, after it failed to secure funding and a slump in the market hit the restart of the company's commercial solar-grade silicon production, Reuters reported. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial Division) gave an order under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, granting the company protection till Feb. 2, Timminco said in a statement. Becancour Silicon Inc, a unit of Timminco also filed for protection.

Natural and organic bedding producer Natura World said yesterday that it has filed a notice of intention to restructure its business under Canada's Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, and has reached an agreement with its lender to provide C$7.8 million in new financing, FurnitureToday.com reported yesterday. The company said that the financing from Callidus Capital of Toronto will create an opportunity for Natura to solidify its position as a natural and organic sleep products brand. The company said there will be no disruption of service to its customers, vendors or suppliers.

The Supreme Court of Canada said that Finance Minister Jim Flaherty's proposal to create a national securities regulator is unconstitutional, arguing that the federal government overstepped its authority into provincial jurisdiction, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. The nine members of the country’s highest court said in its unanimous opinion that the federal government’s proposal "overreaches genuine national concerns." Canada is the only industrialized country in the world without a national securities regulator.

Sino-Forest Corp., already reeling from fraud allegations, has been slapped with default notices from debt holders, a setback that could mark the beginning of the end for what was once Canada’s largest publicly traded forestry company, The Globe and Mail reported. Sino-Forest management, including its Canadian chief executive officer Judson Martin, are now pleading with debt holders not to tip the company into insolvency. The TSX-listed Chinese timber firm had less than $600-million (U.S.) in cash in early November and more than $1.8-billion in debt. Mr.

Sino-Forest Corp.'s second-largest shareholder has joined calls for the Canadian-Chinese timber company to make interest payments on outstanding debt, signalling a battle could be brewing between equity and bondholders over the firm's assets, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported. Davis Advisors, which owns about 17% of Sino-Forest, urged the company to reconsider its decision against making an almost $10 million interest payment that was due Thursday on some of its convertible bonds, given Sino-Forest maintains it's a going concern with real assets.

The Supreme Court of Canada will weigh into the high-stakes debate about whether pension plan members have a claim on an insolvent company’s assets to cover shortfalls in their plan, The Globe and Mail reported. The court announced Thursday it has agreed to hear an appeal of a landmark Ontario court ruling that reversed the traditional pecking order for distributing corporate assets when a company goes bankrupt. The April decision by the Ontario Court of Appeal concluded former employees of aluminum processor Indalex Ltd.

Oilsands Quest Inc. filed for protection from creditors under Canadian law after an unidentified buyer backed out of an agreement to acquire some of its assets, Bloomberg Businessweek reported. The court granted protection under Canada’s Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act until Dec. 21 to allow the company to reorganize its financial affairs while continuing operations, Calgary-based Oilsands Quest said in a statement.