DISTRESS WATCH: Troubled US Leveraged Loans at Six-Month High

Distress is building up in the leveraged loan market, driven to a large extent by mounting financial pain in basic industries such as chemicals.

The amount of US-dollar loans that are in distress jumped to $71.8 billion at the end of October, according to data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence. That’s taken the distressed ratio to 5.09%, the highest level since President Donald Trump first outlined his tariff policy in April.

Chemicals have accounted for the lion’s share of the rise. The sector faces a confluence of headwinds, including rising input costs and early signs of an economic slowdown ...