UK’s Southern Water in Talks to Avoid Thames-Like Debt

Britain’s Southern Water Ltd. is trying to fix its finances in an effort to preserve its investment grade status, safeguard its balance sheet — and avoid the same debt woes as Thames Water, Bloomberg News reported. The utility has entered into talks with its creditors to figure out how to reshape its capital structure, according to people familiar with the matter. The parties are discussing how to accommodate a £900 million ($1.2 billion) equity injection — led by majority shareholder Macquarie Asset Management — and what other tweaks may be necessary to stabilize the company’s finances.
United Kingdom
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Southern Ireland's Insolvency Figures May Hint at North’s Future

Since the beginning of the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, there have existed two different insolvency regimes on the island of Ireland, the Irish News reported. In 2024, there were 852 total insolvencies in the Republic, a 16% increase on 2023. Some 305 companies in Northern Ireland declared insolvency in 2024, an almost 40% increase. Of course, a portion of the explanation will always rest on the sizes of the respective jurisdictions, but Northern Ireland’s much stricter post-Covid insolvency procedures can also help us understand this discrepancy.
Ireland
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Germany to Ease Government Debt Limits in Major Step Aimed at Boosting Economy, Defense Spending

The two political parties expected to form the next German government have agreed to loosen the country's constitution restrictions on borrowing, enabling 1 trillion euros ($1.08 trillion) or more in spending on defense and infrastructure, the Associated Press reported. It’s a major change in Germany’s debt-averse political culture, rejecting conventional economic wisdom that long dominated Europe’s biggest economy and one of the world’s wealthiest countries.
Germany
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Altice France’s Unhappy Creditors Tap Advisers to Improve Terms

A group of secured creditors of Altice France SA, unhappy with the deal arranged between the company and a majority of its creditors to cut about €8.6 billion ($9 billion) of debt, have tapped advisers to find ways to improve their terms, Bloomberg News reported. These creditors — which hold debt maturing in 2028 and 2029 — are working with law firm Ashurst LLP and boutique French advisory firm Ceres Partners.
France
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Eurozone Labor Market Stays Resilient Despite Weak Economy

The eurozone’s job market continued to show resilience at the start of the year, defying signs of weakness in the economy that are of growing concern for policymakers at the European Central Bank, Bloomberg News reported. The number of unemployed workers in the 20-nation bloc fell by 42,000 in January, leaving the unemployment rate at the record low of 6.2% where it has been since October. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal expected a jobless rate of 6.3%.
Europe
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Bundesbank Urges Looser German Debt Rules to Free €220 Billion

Germany should loosen constitutional borrowing limits to free up as much as €220 billion ($232 billion) of fiscal space through 2030 to boost infrastructure and military spending, according to the Bundesbank, Bloomberg News reported. In a report Tuesday discussing options for the country’s so-called debt brake, it recommends significantly higher ceilings of as much as 1.4% of gross domestic product for structural net borrowing — primarily to fund investment.
Germany
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