Viasystems Sees Bankruptcy Exit Jan 31

Viasystems Group Inc. (OTC BB:VSGIQ.OB) said Tuesday a bankruptcy court in New York approved its reorganization plan and the company expects to exit bankruptcy Jan. 31.The St. Louis-based company said the plan, which also covers Viasystems Inc., involves the swapping of about $740 million of debt into new common and preferred stock.Viasystems, which listed $1.6 billion of assets and $1.1 billion of debt in its Oct. 1, 2002 filing under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, said it will exit bankruptcy with about $380 million of debt, saving it about $70 million of interest a year.The company suffered growing losses when demand for its products in the telecommunications and networking end markets fell, credit rating agency Standard & Poor's said.Viasystems said it is conducting business normally through its operating units, which are not part of the reorganization. Upon exiting bankruptcy, existing shares will be worthless, the company said. The shares closed Tuesday at 0.15 of a cent.