Corporate defaults jump: S&P

LONDON, Sept 18 (Reuters): The number of new corporate defaults globally reached 16 in August, the highest August monthly number since 2009, S&P said in a report released last week, the latest sign that corporate stress is building.
While defaults tend to slow down during the summer, last month's number was well above the 8.6 average for August seen in previous years.
This brought the global corporate default tally to 107, with most of the defaults coming from Europe and the United States.
The rating agency expects default rates to keep rising as aggressive rate hikes take their toll on companies.
Default rates are expected to hit 4.5 per cent in the United States by June 2024 from 3.5 per cent in July 2023, and to increase to 3.75 per cent in Europe by June 2024 from 3.1 per cent in July 2023, the report added.
Sector-wise, media and entertainment accounted for one third of defaults in the United States and 25 per cent of the total defaults in August.