Business briefing for May 8

Nylon maker Ascend files for bankruptcy Struggling with debt and a market swamped with overcapacity, the nylon 6,6 producer Ascend Performance Materials has declared bankruptcy in Texas. It has secured $250 million in debtor-in-possession financing that will allow it to continue running until it wraps up the restructuring process in about 6 months. Headquartered in Houston, Ascend makes nylon 6,6 and its precursors, acrylonitrile, adiponitrile, adipic acid, and hexamethylenediamine. The company had sales of $2.4 billion in 2023. The New York City–based private equity firm SK Capital bought the business from Solutia in 2009 for the bargain price of $50 million in cash. Ascend blames the bankruptcy on its underlying financial structure and high debt obligations. This past February, S&P downgraded its rating for Ascend because of underperformance in 2024 and a “challenging operating environment.” Last year, Ascend closed its compounding plant in Tilburg, the Netherlands. Earlier this year, the