European high yield defaults overtake US, according to Moody’s

The trailing 12 month high yield global default rate edged down to 1.7% for the last quarter of 2011, down from 1.8% in the previous quarter, according to Moody's December default report.

The US has continued to see a modest reduction in its default rate, falling from 2.0% in the previous quarter to 1.8% this quarter; while Europe’s rate has almost doubled, rising from 1.4% in the third quarter to 2.7% in the fourth.  

Northern Rock’s junior debt was deemed a distressed exchange, a default by the agency’s definition. This default, which accounts for the bulk of Europe's quarterly total, takes the number of defaults in December globally up to five with 19 defaults for the quarter as a whole.