pay down

When the federal government paused student-loan payments during the Covid-19 pandemic, borrowers had more money available to pay down credit-card debt, invest or save.

Home builders are enticing buyers with discounts and offers to pay down their mortgage rates for a few years with the hope that rates will later fall and let borrowers refinance.

On Friday, a bankruptcy judge rejected a chapter 11 restructuring plan for the U.S. arm of spirits maker Stoli Group because its proposal largely relies on its Kentucky bourbon inventory to pay down its bank debt.

Occidental said it plans to use $6.5 billion of the transaction proceeds to pay down debt.

Wall Street has demanded that companies pay down debt and return cash to investors in the form of buybacks and dividends, and drillers have healthier balance sheets that can better weather price swings.