, Columnists
Apple Leads Tech on Debt Binge
Sure, the companies look good now. But what about in 30 years?
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The biggest technology companies have an uncanny ability to convince debt investors they’ll always be in style and have endless stockpiles of cash.
Even now, when bond buyers are becoming more discerning and defaults are rising, investment-grade tech companies have seemingly limitless access to capital markets. On Tuesday, Apple, IBM and Comcast were planning to sell billions of dollars of bonds with maturities as long as 30 years. They’re still likely to pay historically low overall rates to do so.