LatAm Bonds

LatAm syndicate bankers said Codelco had carried out a perfectly executed trade on Wednesday with its new 10 year, but some highlighted that the re-offer yield should be a lesson to borrowers about the dangers of waiting to issue.

Chilean government-owned copper miner Codelco raised $2bn of 10 year notes on Wednesday in a deal that provoked debate about the size of the new issue premium but was unanimously considered a positive for the LatAm market.

Standard & Poor’s put the Brazilian sovereign into sub-investment grade territory late on Wednesday in a move that came sooner than most had expected but had already been accepted as inevitable.

General Shopping Brasil has exercised its right to defer the payment of interest on its $150m 12% perpetual subordinated notes, meeting the expectations of credit analysts.

Surya Bhattacharjee, a director in BNP Paribas’ Latin American debt capital markets team, has left the French lender, according to a source familiar with the situation.

Moody’s has upgraded Colombian energy company Empresa de Energía de Bogotá (EBB) from Baa3 to Baa2, providing a rare spot of good news amid a spate of downgrades for Latin American corporates.

Bond prices in the secondary market, alongside recent analyst reports, suggest a belief that Venezuela will meet its immediate debt obligations. But the prospects for next year appear murkier.

The news that two Mexican Fibras are looking at international bond markets (see separate story) has done little to lift the mood among LatAm DCM and syndicate bankers who see year-to-date volumes falling further behind 2014 with each passing week.

Two Fibras — the Mexican version of the US real estate investment trusts (Reits) — are considering issuing dollar bonds in September, said bankers, finally providing some visible potential supply to LatAm’s bare pipeline.

Japanese bank Daiwa has expanded its LatAm DCM team with the hire of skydiving instructor Marcelo Bombarelli.

Falling oil prices, an abrupt end to a recent emerging market rally and the largest EM bond outflows since 2013 have not stopped Poland from attempting to end a five week CEEMEA benchmark drought.

Mexican real estate investment trust — or REIT — Fibra Terrafina could become the first borrower from Latin America to bring much-needed bond supply in September as it turns to international markets for the first time.