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Global supply chains have "returned to normal," the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said yesterday, with pressures dropping to the lowest since before the COVID-19 pandemic threw a wrench into procurement networks worldwide and created shortages for everything from microchips to motor vehicles, Reuters reported. In a development that could also point to softening inflation, the New York Fed said its monthly Global Supply Chain Index fell to a reading of negative 0.26 in February, down from a revised 0.94 seen in January. The negative turn for February — which indicates pressures are below the index's historic norm dating from 1998 — was the first since August 2019. The index's recent downshifts from a record high in December 2021 "suggest that global supply chain conditions have returned to normal after experiencing temporary setbacks around the turn of the year," the bank said. The New York Fed observation dovetails with other recent business surveys showing the bottlenecks that have dogged the global economy for roughly three years have finally been unplugged, with the latest improvements occurring after China ended its COVID restrictions at the end of last year. A measure of supplier delivery times from S&P Global was the most improved in February since 2009.

Nearly three years after criminals first set their sights on the government’s generous coronavirus aid programs, President Biden today called on Congress to approve $1.6 billion to combat fraud, hoping to empower federal prosecutors and prevent such historic theft from targeting taxpayer money again, the Washington Post reported. The new request for funds foreshadows the years of costly and complicated work now ahead of Washington, after malicious actors set their sights on the more than $5 trillion that lawmakers intended for workers, families and businesses amid the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. But the push from the White House could still face familiar political obstacles on Capitol Hill. Seeking to punish criminals and secure new savings at a moment of rising deficits, lawmakers long have expressed alarm about the vast sums stolen during the pandemic — yet they have done little to address the root causes of the problem. Beginning in March 2020, Democrats and Republicans banded together to adopt a series of laws that injected trillions of dollars into the economy. The unprecedented aid provided extra weekly checks to unemployed workers; offered easy, forgivable loans to cash-starved businesses; and guaranteed urgently needed money for hospitals, schools and local governments under immense financial strain.

The Corner Bakery restaurant chain filed for bankruptcy this week, after the COVID-19 pandemic emptied out offices, bringing sharp declines in earnings and revenue, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Chief Executive Jignesh Pandya said a lender recently threatened a foreclosure sale, pushing the company into bankruptcy. The shift to working from home proved problematic for the chain as it generates a large part of its revenue from office catering and serving breakfast and lunch to commuters, according to court papers filed by Mr. Pandya on Wednesday. The Dallas-based chain has locations in about 20 states including California, Texas and Illinois. It was founded in 1991 and was acquired in 2020 by Pandya Restaurant Growth Brands LLC, which is operated by Mr. Pandya. Corner Bakery was negotiating with lenders who alleged it had defaulted on its loans. The company was in talks with its lenders to pay off more than $20 million, when they sold the loan to SSCP Restaurant Investors LLC, which then moved to begin a foreclosure sale of its assets, according to Mr. Pandya’s court filing. SSCP didn’t address Corner Bakery’s offer to make loan payments, according to Mr. Pandya.

Ivelisse Rivera-Padilla and Carla Carrillo-Torres, and the company VIP Healthcare Solutions, Inc. (“VIP Healthcare”) were indicted by a federal Grand Jury in relation to bankruptcy fraud, a money laundering scheme, PPP fraud, and bank fraud announced W. Stephen Muldrow, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, according to a DOJ press release. Ivelisse Rivera-Padilla, the President of VIP Healthcare, was indicted in a bankruptcy fraud scheme for making materially false representations from March 2017 to May 2022 in order to defraud during her bankruptcy proceeding, In re: Ivelisse Rivera Padilla, Case No. 17-01782, all in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 157. Additionally, she is charged with 10 counts of concealment of assets during her bankruptcy proceedings in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 152(1), and 3 counts of making false statements in relation to such bankruptcy proceedings, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 152(3). The indictment alleges that during the bankruptcy proceedings, Ivelisse Rivera-Padilla concealed property and income and failed to disclose to the trustee charged with control of the debtor’s property and from the creditors and the U.S. Trustee all of the bankruptcy estate during the course of her bankruptcy proceedings, including, but not limited to the creation, operation, ownership, and control of VIP Healthcare.

Tuesday Morning Corp. filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bloomberg News reported. The Dallas-based discount retailer filed in the Northern District of Texas, listing assets and liabilities of $100 million to $500 million, in its bankruptcy petition. It emerged from its last bankruptcy in January 2021 after closing about 200 stores, cutting its employee headcount and slashing debt. But the company soon found itself in trouble again, battling inflation and supply chain bottlenecks. It recently added BDO USA as a restructuring adviser, Bloomberg News reported last month. That came after an investor group led by Retail Ecommerce Ventures — which owns brands such as Pier 1 Imports and Modell’s Sporting Goods — and existing management provided a $35 million financial lifeline in September. The retail sector is reeling from a disappointing holiday season as inflation and rising interest rates dampen consumer spending. Party City Holdco Inc., a U.S. specialty retailer that struggled to rebound after sales plummeted during the pandemic, sought bankruptcy protection in January. Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. only managed to avert bankruptcy with a last-gasp $1 billion deal last week. Founded in 1974, Tuesday Morning operates 490 stores and specializes in home goods, furnishings and related products. As of June 30, 2021, it employed 1,607 people full‑time, and 4,692 part-time staffers. The company also moved to delist its stock in late December.

The Biden administration’s decision to end the COVID-19 national emergency declaration could undermine a central justification for its student-debt forgiveness plan as the Supreme Court prepares to decide the fate of the program, the Wall Street Journal reported. Mr. Biden outlined a plan in August to cancel up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt for borrowers making under $125,000 a year. Unable to pass the plan in Congress, the White House relied on expanded executive powers tied to the emergency declaration to enact the plan, and Mr. Biden said his intent was to “address the financial harms of the pandemic.” Republican officials from six states sued to stop the plan on the grounds that it was an unlawful use of presidential authority that would harm state tax revenues. Individual borrowers backed by conservative groups also sued, arguing they didn’t have a chance to weigh in on the forgiveness program’s eligibility criteria. Lower courts blocked the plan from being implemented. The Supreme Court will hear arguments in the case on Feb. 28, with a ruling expected by this summer.