Puerto Rico Weighing Plan to Stop Paying Debt to Preserve Cash
- Chief-of-staff says island needs money for essential services
- The commonwealth and its agencies owe $70 billion of debt
This article is for subscribers only.
Puerto Rico may suspend principal and interest payments on its bonds in less than three months as the island struggles to cover health and safety programs, according to an administration official.
The potential halt on debt-service payments comes as the commonwealth’s Government Development Bank faces a $422 million debt payment May 1. Puerto Rico and its agencies owe investors $2 billion on July 1, including $805 million for general-obligations, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.