Noble Group in $4.9 billion annual loss

Struggling commodities trader Noble Group Ltd plunged to an annual loss of $4.9 billion, mainly due to non-cash losses on derivatives contracts and said it was still holding talks on its $3.4 billion debt restructuring deal. The restructuring is crucial for the survival of the Singapore-listed company, which has sold billions of dollars of assets, taken hefty writedowns and cut hundreds of jobs over the past three years to slash debt.
"Restructuring discussions with stakeholders continue to be productive as the group moves towards launching the restructuring support agreement for the holders of the existing senior debt instruments," Noble said in a statement. The company is seeking to halve its senior debt and in return give senior creditors 70 percent of the company, while existing equity holders will be diluted to 10 percent. But the restructuring plan is facing resistance from some shareholders and bond holders. Noble reported a net loss of $4.9 billion for the year ending 2017 versus a net profit of $8.7 million a year ago. Last week, Noble flagged a record annual loss of $4.78 billion to $4.98 billion.