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Brazilian airline Azul SA is not currently engaged in negotiations for a possible acquisition offer for struggling Avianca Brasil, said Azul Chief Executive John Rodgerson, Reuters reported. But he acknowledged there could be space for a possible deal with Brazil’s fourth largest airline, which filed for bankruptcy protection this week. "Their bankruptcy protection case is very recent. It is possible that, in the future, we take a look at it, but right now there is nothing,” he said, nothing he will watch the “natural course” of the case.
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Since becoming a symbol of Wall Street greed during the financial crisis, Goldman Sachs has tried to recast its image as an investment bank that cares as much about ethics as it does its bottom line, the New York Times reported. Now, that makeover is being undone by the bank’s work for an obscure investment fund in Malaysia, which has entangled it in civil and criminal investigations around the world. Goldman recently received subpoenas from New York regulators, held talks with federal prosecutors and is likely to incur billions of dollars in penalties.
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China’s effort to cut the burden of insolvent companies weighing on its slowing economy has kicked into higher gear, with a slew of bankruptcy filings that’s set to enrich the case history of debt resolutions for bond investors, Bloomberg News reported. Local courts have accepted or plan to accept at least five bankruptcy applications from firms that defaulted on publicly issued bonds since early November. That’s roughly on par with the number seen over the previous four years. The new pace may continue: China’s top planning body called on Dec.
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The insolvency administrator for bankrupt airline Air Berlin has sued its former largest shareholder, Gulf airline Etihad, for 2 billion euros ($2.26 billion) in damages, a Berlin court said Friday, the Associated Press reported. The suit alleges United Arab Emirates-based Etihad failed to live up to its financial obligations by withdrawing funding from the struggling airline, according to the Berlin administrative court. In a statement, the court said Etihad had been supporting Air Berlin and sent a so-called "comfort letter" in April 2017 assuring its continued backing for 18 months.
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The Mexican government, labor and business sectors agreed Monday to raise the minimum wage by 16.2% in 2019, a third consecutive year of double-digit increases aimed at restoring the purchasing power of the country’s lowest earners, the Wall Street Journal reported. The minimum wage will rise to 102.68 pesos ($5.10) a day from 88.36 pesos on Jan. 1, while along the northern border with the U.S. the minimum daily wage will double to 176.72 pesos ($8.80), said Labor Minister Luisa María Alcalde.
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RattanIndia Power Ltd., a electricity generator backed by hedge fund Farallon Capital Management, is close to restructuring about $500 million of stressed loans, Bloomberg News reported. The company, which is building coal-fired power plants to produce 5,400 megawatt of electricity -- enough to light up 7 million rural homes in India -- has offered to pay banks 52 percent of the obligations of its project in Amravati in Maharashtra state. The talks with creditors are on-going and there’s no certainty they will result in a transaction.
RattanIndia Power Ltd., a electricity generator backed by hedge fund Farallon Capital Management, is close to restructuring about $500 million of stressed loans, Bloomberg News reported. The company, which is building coal-fired power plants to produce 5,400 megawatt of electricity -- enough to light up 7 million rural homes in India -- has offered to pay banks 52 percent of the obligations of its project in Amravati in Maharashtra state. The talks with creditors are on-going and there’s no certainty they will result in a transaction.
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co.’s credit rating was cut by Moody’s Investors Service, which cited the drugmakers’ ballooning debt level following its $62 billion acquisition of Shire Plc, Bloomberg News reported. Moody’s cut Takeda’s credit rating three notches to Baa2 from A2, according to a statement Monday. That’s still investment grade, and Moody’s said the outlook is stable based on expectations that Takeda will reduce its leverage through cost synergies and growth from key products.
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The concessions offered by Italy’s government on its planned budget are on the right track but may not be enough to placate Brussels, the EU’s economy commissioner has warned. “It is a step in the right direction but we are not there yet, there are still steps to be taken, perhaps on both sides,” Pierre Moscovici said on Thursday. Rome has proposed cutting its planned budget deficit for 2019 to 2.04 per cent from 2.4 per cent of gross domestic product, the Financial Times reported.
Mario Draghi, the ECB president, has acknowledged that slower growth lies ahead for the eurozone, reflecting persistently weak data for the region in recent months, the Financial Times reported. The euro gave up its gains for the day and turned negative as Mr Draghi spoke following the end of the central bank’s regular policy meeting on Thursday.