Those in credit management know the feeling of dread that comes from a slow-paying customer, or the anxiety sparked by a customer who doesn’t pay at all. Troublesome payment habits can weigh on credit professionals, but they also prompt an important question: when is it time to pursue legal action?

In a construction project, many elements come into play: planning, design, financing, materials, contracts, workforce and more. At the end of the day, everyone in the supply chain, from the owner to the supplier, wants to get paid. For credit professionals, the concern is the same.

Over the past three years, Costa Rica’s economy has continued to grow, outperforming previous expectations. In the last decade, the country’s economic growth averaged 3.4% and reached 5.1% in 2023 and 4.3% in 2024, according to the World Bank Group.

After a more than 40-day government shutdown, a small group of Senate Democrats gave Republicans the votes they needed to end the shutdown without a vote on expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies. Let’s look at what they did get.

Bankruptcy poses a great challenge for credit professionals—a tangled web of risk and recovery that tests every creditor’s strategy and patience. For unsecured trade creditors, the most daunting part is understanding their position in the payment hierarchy and seeking ways to maximize recoveries despite the relatively little leverage an individual unsecured trade creditor has in a given Chapter 11 case. One way to achieve these objectives is to serve on an Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors, or a creditors’ committee.

Many credit departments are considering how to make the most of professional development opportunities. That’s where NACM’s Credit Congress & Exposition comes in. Those who’ve attended the annual conference can attest to its long-lasting value and how it remains one of the most rewarding investments they can make in their growth.

After earning her bachelor’s in business administration and international business in 2008, Jennifer LeMaster, CBA, CICP, AR and credit supervisor for Lhoist North America (Fort Worth, TX), decided to return to the classroom to further enhance her credit expertise by earning her certifications through NACM and FCIB’s Professional Certification Program.

Argentina’s President Javier Milei won in a key midterm election, signaling a larger confidence in his last two years in office. The election, held in the last week of October, strengthens Milei’s ability to carry out his free-market experiment, according to the Associated Press, all with billions of dollars in backing from the United States.

NACM’s seasonally adjusted combined Credit Managers’ Index (CMI) for October 2025 improved 2.1 points to 54.5. “The index recovered most of last month’s drop and remains in expansion, but the statements made by respondents are worrying,” said NACM Economist Amy Crews Cutts, Ph.D., CBE. “The respondent comments are starkly negative, citing increased business failures and bankruptcies, lien filings and demands for extended terms.”