NEW YORK: A committee of creditors on Thursday ruled that Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA has defaulted on its debt, a decision that triggers payment of default insurance to investors and deals another blow to the oil-rich but cash-poor nation. The New York-based committee examined three missed PDVSA bond payments at the request of investors, and ruled that “a Failure to Pay Credit Event had occurred,” according to a statement. Struggling with an estimated US$150 billion in debt, the government of President Nicolas Maduro called creditors to a meeting Monday to discuss restructuring payments, but offered no concrete plan. Russia and China are the two main creditors and allies of Venezuela, which owes them an estimated US$8 billion and US$28 billion respectively. There are about US$60 billion in PDVSA and sovereign bonds outstanding, and investors buy CDS as a hedge or insurance on that debt.

Source: New Strait Times November 16, 2017 22:52 UTC