But as with other established Japanese firms that have dodged financial collapse, such as liquid crystal display inventor Sharp, Toshiba could face protracted pain.
Financial sources last week pointed to problem businesses within Toshiba beyond nuclear, including Landis+Gyr.
Toshiba agreed to buy that unlisted meter maker for $2.3 billion in 2011 to tap smart grid demand that at the time was expected to grow six-fold to around $70 billion in 10 years. At the end of September, the goodwill value of Landis+Gyr was 143.2 billion yen ($1.3 billion).
Other stumbling blocks for Toshiba include a $7.4 billion commitment four years ago to buy U.S. liquefied natural gas believing that would help sell power plant turbines.
Accounting scandal
A fall in Asian gas prices, now at about half the level they were, has cast doubt on that strategy.
Toshiba, on a stock exchange watchlist barring it from issuing new shares, must also contend with fallout from the 2015 accounting scandal.
Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking last month said it will seek 1 billion yen in damages, while sources say Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank and Mizuho Trust & Banking are preparing similar suits.
With its latest financial crisis unresolved, investors appear most nervous about Toshiba’s short-term prospects.
The cost of insuring against a credit default has soared over the past two months. Five-year insurance, or credit default swaps, was quoted at 315/355 basis points on Friday, compared with 75 basis points in mid-December.
That quote, below late December highs, suggests it would cost $315,000-$355,000 per year for five years to insure $10 million in bonds. The CDS curve is inverted, suggesting short-term cover is most expensive.
