Headlines

For many people in Central and Eastern Europe, a new experience began a quarter-century ago. Communist governments collapsed, and the wide world of private ownership, democracy and free markets opened up suddenly. It was not always a happy transition, the International New York Times reported. This month, even as Germans were celebrating the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Hungarian government was passing laws and issuing edicts aimed at helping a large proportion of the populace recover from the mistake of buying houses with loans denominated in Swiss francs.

Ireland moved close to an accord on repaying International Monetary Fund bailout loans early, with Sweden set to become the last European Union nation to agree, the Irish Times reported. The Swedish parliament’s finance committee today unanimously proposed to allow Ireland to refinance IMF funds without triggering similar payments on its lower-cost European loans. Sweden is the last EU approval needed, and a vote by parliament in Stockholm is scheduled for November 19, Lars Widlund, a civil servant at the committee, said by phone today.

Creditors who own bonds left over from Argentina’s default in 2001 are growing increasingly confident the government will negotiate once a clause that it says prevents a settlement expires next month, Bloomberg Businessweek reported. The dollar-denominated notes rose as high as 120 cents on the dollar, according to prices compiled by Exotix USA Inc., which specializes in illiquid and distressed emerging-market debt. That’s the highest since July 30, when Argentina defaulted on securities issued in debt restructurings in 2005 and 2010.

Monte dei Paschi di Siena, Europe’s oldest bank and one of its most troubled, on Wednesday reported a loss of 797 million euros, or $991 million, in the third quarter after it drastically increased the amount of money set aside to cover problem loans, the International New York Times DealBook blog reported. The loss comes as Monte dei Paschi, which is based in Italy, is struggling to make up a capital shortfall exposed by the European Central Bank as part of a bank cleanup.

A flurry of firms have filed lawsuits against the Singapore units of bankrupt Danish shipping fuel trader OW Bunker, with claims totalling more than S$5 million, and traders say this is likely just the beginning of a wave of court actions. Court documents seen by Reuters showed that the overall amount of claims made against OW Bunker Far East and Dynamic Oil Trading, both Singapore-based subsidiaries of the Danish firm, over unpaid supplies now total around S$5.3 million ($4.11 million) made by nearly half a dozen companies.

International bondholders advised by Rothschild are recommending a change in control at Ukrainian agricultural company Mriya Agro Holding Plc as the grower of crops from wheat to potatoes seeks to restructure about $1 billion of debt, Bloomberg News reported. Tensions have increased since Mriya said in August it missed payments on some of its obligations. Rothschild, which is representing a group of creditors including Ashmore Investment Management Ltd, T. Rowe Price Associates Inc.

No one expects Mexico to restructure its debt anytime soon. But if it ever does, so-called vulture investors like Mr. Singer’s Elliott Management will find it much harder to crash the debt restructuring party – as they have done so successfully in Argentina – thanks to tough new provisions written into the contracts of new bond issues for the country, the International New York Times DealBook blog reported.

Vivarte SAS’s loans tumbled to their lowest levels since the French retailer was taken over by creditors last month, according to three people familiar with the matter. The company’s 800 million euros ($997 million) of senior loans fell to 63 cents on the euro, down about 20 cents since the start of November, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The loans are part of Vivarte’s remaining debt after lenders wrote off about 2 billion euros in a restructuring that completed on Oct. 29.

South Africa's competition watchdog on Wednesday gave Lewis Group preliminary approval to purchase more than 60 stores from failed furniture firm Ellerine, paving the way for a $8 million deal that is expected to save nearly 400 jobs, Reuters reported. The Competition Commission said in a statement it would recommend that Lewis, which sells furniture and appliances to lower-income shoppers, be allowed to acquire 63 shops operating under the Beares brand as long as there were no job cuts. Approval from the commission is the first hurdle under South African law.

On the eve of a multibillion-dollar settlement with six giant banks suspected of manipulating the foreign currency market, regulators in Washington and Britain have encountered a last-second complication: One of the banks may drop out of the deal, the International New York Times DealBook blog reported. The giant British bank Barclays has yet to commit to settling, according to people briefed on the matter, even as the window of opportunity closes.