South America

It is said that if all forestry management was conducted like Sweden’s SCA, there would be no climate change problem. It is said, specifically, by SCA’s vice president for environmental affairs, Patrik Isaksson. “Yes,” he says cheerfully. “Let me explain that provocative statement.”

Brazilian meatpacker Marfrig wasted no time in putting the proceeds of its sale of UK subsidiary Moy Park to work, launching a tender offer for old dollar bonds the day after the deal was closed.

Bondholders have given Banrisul a stronger response to its tender offer for subordinated debt than they gave Brazilian peer Banco BMG in the early bird phase, but not as overwhelming a response as they gave Banco Votorantim, as Brazilian banks look to repurchase expensive bonds.

The Argentine province of Neuquén said it would make a second attempt to sell a dollar-denominated bond “when market conditions are more stable and convenient”, after the region’s government did not approve the interest rates that investors were seeking.

With local currency devaluations hurting dollar bond issuers across Latin America, Peruvian sugar cane producer Corporación Azucarera del Perú (Coazucar) has launched a tender offer for up to $165m of international bonds.

Sellside bankers desperate to generate business in a stormy LatAm debt market will have been pleased. For as a lesson for issuers in the benefits of sacrificing a few basis points in the interests of getting a deal done, Colombia’s long 10 year on Monday was as good as they come.

Another torrid week for Brazilian credit had investors predicting the sell-off in the country’s assets had further to run despite some names looking cheap at first glance.

Brazilian low-cost airline Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes is considering becoming the second Latin American company to issue EETCs (enhanced equipment trust certificates), a type of secured bond that has become fashionable among airline borrowers.

Latin America bankers observing Colombia’s latest bond issue had no complaints about execution but said that the deal was evidence of the higher concessions that the region’s issuers must pay amid EM and commodity-related volatility.

Brazilian telco giant Oi’s bonds dropped up to 14 points before recovering much of the lost ground as the company hired Rothschild to advise it on its debt profile but denied a restructuring was on the cards.

The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) said on Friday that it has appointed the local branch of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China as the renminbi clearing bank for Argentina. The country becomes the second official RMB hub in Latin America, following the footsteps of Chile.

Troubled Brazilian shopping centre owner General Shopping Brasil has launched a heavily discounted tender of its 10% senior perpetual notes in an effort to reduce its dollar debt, although Fitch says that a debt restructuring is “likely to occur in the near future”.