The rash of oil and gas bankruptcies in North America is set to continue for the remainder of 2020, a report by Haynes and Boone cited by Reuters shows. After the coronavirus pandemic and oil price war set in at the end of the first quarter, the second quarter began with a wave of bankruptcies in the oil and gas sector in North America, according to the report. There have been more than 18 producer bankruptcies in Q2 alone, according to Haynes and Boone—it is the highest quarterly figure since 2016 during the previous oil price crash. So far this year, 41 oil producers and oilfield service firms have sought bankruptcy protection. Even without the coronavirus pandemic or the oil price war, the flurry of bankruptcies were to be expected, with companies holding junk-rated bonds defaulting on interest payments at record levels even in 2019, with more distressed companies […]