Oil and gas companies in the Americas have been feasting at the debt markets trough this year. But falling prices have put them on a diet. As of Dec. 12, borrowings by oil and gas companies from North, Central and South America—including the U.S., Canada, Brazil and Mexico—accounted for 60% of all money raised from debt issued by energy companies globally in 2014. The $145.9 billion in bonds issued by companies from the Americas hit a year-to-date record, even as global borrowing for the industry fell to its lowest level since 2011, according to Dealogic. Brazilian oil company Petróleo Brasileiro SA’s $8.5 billion bond, issued in March, was the year’s largest. Oil prices have plunged in recent weeks amid growing supply and falling demand. Last week, the benchmark U.S. oil price fell below $60 a barrel for the first time in five years, which has put pressure on the […]