Puerto Rico's governor says island's debts are 'not payable'

Puerto Rico’s governor, saying he needs to pull the island out of a “death spiral,” has concluded the commonwealth cannot pay its roughly $72 billion in debts, an admission that will probably have wide-reaching financial repercussions.

Alejandro García Padilla told the New York Times his staff would seek significant concessions from many as all of the island’s creditors. The island could seek deferral of debt payments for as long as five years or extension of the timeline for repayment.

“The debt is not payable,” García Padilla said. “There is no other option. I would love to have an easier option. This is not politics, this is math.”

Read more from the New York Times.