South America

Colombian corporates have become rare treats for bond investors but investors were able to feast on a high yield debut issuer from the country on Wednesday to give an unusual start to the Latin American corporate primary market for the year.

Investors were eager to point out that the keen sense of anticipation over regime change in Venezuela hides a reality fraught with uncertainty. But as chaos grips the country, bondholders spy long-term opportunities. Oliver West reports.

The end of the long weekend brought back the return of a weaker tone in bond markets on Tuesday as Latin American primary markets were silent despite bankers boasting of a reasonable pipeline.

Fishmeal producer Pesquera Exalmar has become the latest Peruvian corporate to opt for alternative sources of funding to refinance bonds after it used a syndicated loan to redeem its outstanding 2020s

Brazilian building materials company Votorantim Cimentos is looking to buy back up to $650m of outstanding bonds using funds that its parent company is set to receive from the sale of its stake in pulp and paper company Fibria.

Uruguay said that the government had covered nearly all of its debt maturities for 2019 after the sovereign became the first issuer from Latin America to tap international bond markets this year.

If any of Latin America’s larger sovereigns spent the first half of January lingering on the sidelines not wanting to pay up for being the region’s first issuer in 2019, their angst was misplaced.

Brazilian building materials company Votorantim Cimentos is looking to buy back up to $650m of outstanding bonds using funds that its parent company is set to receive from the sale of pulp and paper company Fibria, due to go through on January 14.

Colombian company TermoCandelaria Power Limited (TPL) finally injected some intention to the Latin American primary bond market with a roadshow announcement, but bankers continue seeking a candidate to be the first to raise funding.

Brazilian state oil giant Petrobras began the year finalising yet another buy-back of existing bonds, though the response from bondholders fell below the $1.5bn maximum repurchase amount set by the borrower.

Brazilian bank BTG Pactual is asking holders of its perpetual bonds issued in 2014 to agree to a new indenture that allows the lender to change the issuing branch of the notes.

Brazilian state oil giant Petrobras began the year finalising yet another buy-back of existing bonds, though the response from bondholders fell below the $1.5bn maximum repurchase amount set by the borrower.