Power Breakfast: CIT bankruptcy, Delta, substitutes, Kia, stimulus

It’s not AIG or GMAC. The next initials you’ll be reading a lot about in the business world are CIT.

Sunday’s bankruptcy of CIT, a key lender that helps retailers stock their shelves, is adding to the industry’s worries ahead of the critical holiday shopping season, the Associated Press reports.

CIT Group Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York after months of struggling to avoid collapse.

The company provides badly needed credit to thousands of small and mid-sized businesses, and is a critical part of the flow of capital in the retail sector.

CIT stressed that its lending operations will continue to operate as it proceeds through bankruptcy with the hope of shedding $10 billion in debt, AP reported.

But retail groups and analysts warn that the case will likely add to the instability in the retail sector. CIT is an important source of capital, working with 2,000 vendors that supply merchandise to more than 300,000 stores, AP wrote. About 60 percent of the apparel industry depends on CIT for financing.

Also in the AJC:

• Atlanta mayoral candidates make final pitches
• Delta lease at Hartsfield hits turbulence
• Hard times for substitute teachers
• Kia set to rev image, sales
• Stimulus responsible for 25,000 jobs in Georgia

In other media:

• GOP set to propose own health bill
• Climate bill faces hurdles in Senate
• As jobs vanish, factory towns slow to see stimulus
• The cruel math of big losses
• Small banks move in as giants falter