Takeaways from AP analysis on the rise of world's debt-laden 'zombie' companies
They are called zombies, companies so laden with debt that they are just stumbling by on the brink of survival, struggling to pay even the interest on their loans and often just a bad business hit away from dying off for good
By Bernard Condon
Published - Jun 07, 2024, 01:48 AM ET
Last Updated - Jun 07, 2024, 01:48 AM EDT
NEW YORK (AP) — An Associated Press analysis found the number of publicly-traded “zombie” companies — those so laden with debt they're struggling to pay even the interest on their loans — has soared to nearly 7,000 around the world, including 2,000 in the United States.
And many of them soon could be facing their day of reckoning, with due dates looming on hundreds of billions of dollars of loans they may not be able to pay back.
“They’re going to get crushed,” Valens Securities Managing Director Robert Spivey said of the weakest zombies.
Here are the key takeaways from the AP’s analysis:
