LatAm Bonds

Latin American new issue markets enjoyed a quiet week with as carnival celebrations replaced the debt party with which the region started the year, but Brazilian issuers look ready for a swift return to market mode.

Lat Am bond investors are keeping a close eye on Venezuelan state-owned oil giant PDVSA in the run-up to the company’s next amortisation payment in April, with the source of funds used for the payment set to provide important clues as to the likelihood of default.

Mexican autoparts manufacturer Nemak will begin a roadshow next week ahead of a planned euro-denominated bond debut, looking to become the third Mexican issuer of 2017 — and the third in euros.

Landlocked South American sovereign Paraguay is likely to return to international bond markets early this month after nominating Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Citi to run its next debt sale.

Mexican cement company Cemex said on Tuesday that it would buy back $475m of existing dollar bonds after receiving a strong response to its proposed tender offer.

Economists at the Institute of International Finance (IIF) said on Monday that they believed Venezuela was “rapidly approaching breaking point”, despite movements in the short end of the country’s curve suggesting investors are less pessimistic.

Argentina’s third largest private sector lender Banco Macro is considering selling up to $300m of New York law peso-linked notes, following in the steps of fellow banks Supervielle and Hipotecario.

The government of Belize has extended the deadline for a consent solicitation designed to ease its debt burden for the fourth time, but has again failed to offer bondholders a better deal.

The province of Córdoba sold a five times oversubscribed 7.5 year bond on Wednesday to suggest that plenty of appetite for Argentine paper remained — even if it is growing ever more picky about credit quality.

A healthy pick-up to Central American peers, and investor optimism that political bickering would not put the country at risk of default, allowed El Salvador to raise $601m of vital 12 year funding on Tuesday, despite the sovereign rapidly nearing triple-C status.

Inversiones Atlántida, the Honduran financial holding company, could look to issue a debut international bond in March after postponing plans in November when Donald Trump’s election as US president shook markets.

Central American sovereign Belize failed to make a $13m coupon payment on its 2038 bonds this week, after saying it hoped to persuade bondholders to agree to a consent solicitation that would provide significant debt relief.