Extra, extra, read all about it: “Newsprint demand shredded.” AbitibiBowater, the largest producer and recycler of newsprint, seems to have only skim-read that article after being formed by a merger in late 2007. Its debt load was large to begin with for a notoriously cyclical business and, in spite of prodigious cost cutting, it could not counteract plunging demand for packaging, housing and, especially, paper.

Now Abitibi may be just days from bankruptcy as a debt restructuring falters and secured creditors lose faith. Holders of $1.8bn in debt have been given a deadline of midnight tonight to restructure it, though a failure may not be the final word. This is the third attempt, so deadlines appear fluid. Less fluid is a term loan that comes due on Monday.