Economics
Bond Distress at Three-Year Low on Refinancings: Credit Markets
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The percentage of corporate bonds considered in distress is the lowest in more than three years as the U.S. economic recovery gives fixed-income investors the confidence to lend to the riskiest borrowers.
The number of junk bonds trading at yields at least 10 percentage points more than government debt fell to 215, or 8.6 percent of the total, as of Jan. 7, the least since October 2007, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s Global High-Yield Index. Spreads on debt of Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment Corp., the world’s biggest casino operator, and credit-card processor IPayment Inc. are below the threshold for the first time since 2008.