Latin America

Mexico-headquartered home appliances company Controladora Mabe is offering bondholders a fee to enable Chinese group Qindao Haier to buy General Electric’s share in the borrower.

Consensus is growing among investors and analysts that default is inevitable for Venezuela, as oil hits lows not seen in more than a decade.

Energy investor EIG said that bondholders of Colombian-Canadian oil firm Pacific Exploration & Production faced a “de minimis” recovery after the company said on January 15 that it would not make scheduled coupon payments this month.

Mexican infrastructure and construction company Empresas ICA confirmed that it would not make a $6m bond interest payment due on January 25 as it hired a new official to negotiate with bondholders.

Mexican infrastructure and construction company Empresas ICA confirmed that it would not make a $6m bond interest payment due on January 25 as it hired a new official to negotiate with bondholders.

Colombian state owned oil company, Ecopetrol said it wanted to reiterate its commitment to cost cutting and protecting its cash flow after Moody’s left it perilously close to losing one of its investment grade ratings.

Heavily indebted Colombian-Canadian oil company Pacific Exploration & Production disappointed some bondholders on Friday by announcing it intended to miss coupon payments due this month and use the 30 day grace period “to assess strategic alternatives”.

Latin America’s best-rated sovereign reopened the region’s capital markets this week with a dual-currency trade that showed large financings are still on offer — though it also provoked debate over issuance strategies in tough markets.

Lat Am bankers said that the 15bp-20bp new issue concession achieved by Mexico in its first deal of the year was unlikely to be bettered by anyone soon after the sovereign raised $2.25bn in a tough market.

There may be a new man in charge at the Mexican debt management office, but bankers were just as effusive as ever over its $2.25bn of 10 year bond, its first issuance of 2016, on Wednesday.

Bankers say that at least two sovereigns from Latin America are considering announcing deals on Wednesday after Chile brought some much needed new issue action to the region on Tuesday.

Chile has tightened price guidance on the first bond from Latin America this year, a 10 year euro-denominated deal, to 115bp area over mid-swaps.