Bangkok--21 Jan--Standard & Poor's
The pace of corporate defaults increased rapidly in fourth-quarter 2008, and it hasn't slowed down yet this year, said an article published Friday, January 16, 2009 by Standard & Poor's, titled "Global Corporate Default Update (Jan. 12 - 15, 2009) (Premium)."
"Another four issuers defaulted this week, bringing the total to eight global corporate defaults so far in 2009, compared with 122 in all of 2008," said Diane Vazza, head of Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research Group.
Of the four defaults this week, two resulted from bankruptcies--U.S.-based artificial sweetener producer Merisant Worldwide Inc. (maker of Equal), which filed for bankruptcy protection on Jan. 13, 2009, and Canadian telecommunications equipment manufacturer Nortel Networks Corp., which filed for bankruptcy protection on Jan. 14, 2009. The remaining two defaulters missed interest payments. These two companies are U.S. cable television provider Charter Communications Inc. and semiconductor manufacturer Spansion Inc.
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