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       T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                 L A T I N   A M E R I C A

          Tuesday, June 9, 2020, Vol. 21, No. 115

                           Headlines



A R G E N T I N A

ARGENTINA: Buenos Aires Province Extends Deadline for Debt Talks


B R A Z I L

NATURA COSMETICOS: Fitch Lowers LT IDR & Unsec. Rating to 'BB-'


C A Y M A N   I S L A N D S

SEAGATE HDD CAYMAN: S&P Rates Nine-Year Unsecured Notes 'BB+'


C O S T A   R I C A

AERIS HOLDING: Moody's Alters Outlook on B1 Unsec. Rating to Neg.
INSTITUTO COSTARRICENSE: Moody's Alters Outlook on B1 CFR to Neg.
[*] Moody's Alters Outlook on Costa Rican Banks to Negative


E C U A D O R

ECUADOR: Investors Organize as Country Talks Begin


J A M A I C A

JAMAICA: Resolves Issues That Hampered Payment Under CARE Program


P U E R T O   R I C O

WESTERN HOST: Puerto Rico Tourism Says Plan Disclosures Inadequate


V E N E Z U E L A

VENEZUELA: Announces Fuel Price Hike in Historic Policy Shift

                           - - - - -


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A R G E N T I N A
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ARGENTINA: Buenos Aires Province Extends Deadline for Debt Talks
----------------------------------------------------------------
Cassandra Garrison at Reuters reports that Argentina's Buenos Aires
province extended the deadline for debt restructuring talks with
its creditors to June 19, saying there could be room for
negotiation with its creditors.

The province pushed out the deadline, previously set, after failing
to reach a deal with bondholders, but said in a statement that it
would "intensify the dialogue with investors who have not yet
accepted the proposal" for about $7.148 billion in debt, according
to Reuters.

"There is a certain margin to introduce changes to the offer and,
in turn, respect the sustainability framework drawn up by the
province," the province's finance minister, Pablo Lopez, said in a
statement, adding that officials remain committed to "good faith"
communication in order to arrive at the best possible alternative,
the report notes.

Provincial officials need approval by holders of more than 75% of
the debt to move forward with a restructuring proposal, the report
relays.  Officials previously invited creditors to submit
counter-offers after they rejected the province's original offer,
the report says.

Ratings agency S&P Global cut Buenos Aires's credit rating to "SD"
from "CC" after the province missed the deadline for about a $110
million bond payment on May 14.

The provincial debt crunch hits as the federal government has still
not hammered out a restructuring deal on about $65 billion in
sovereign bonds, leading to the nation's ninth sovereign default in
May, the report adds.

                             About Argentina

Argentina is a country located mostly in the southern half of
South America.  It's capital is Buenos Aires. Alberto Angel
Fernandez is the current president of Argentina after winning the
October 2019 general election. He succeeded Mauricio Macri in the
position.

Argentina has the third largest economy in Latin America.  The
country's economy is an upper middle-income economy for fiscal
year 2019 according to the World Bank.  Historically, however, its
economic performance has been very uneven, with high economic
growth alternating with severe recessions, income maldistribution
and in the recent decades, increasing poverty.

As reported by the Troubled Company Reporter - Latin America on
April 14, 2020, Fitch Ratings upgraded Argentina's Long-Term
Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating to 'CC' from 'RD' and
Short-Term Foreign Currency IDR to 'C' from 'RD'.

The TCR-LA reported on April 13, 2020, that S&P Global Ratings
also lowered its long- and short-term foreign currency sovereign
credit ratings on Argentina to 'SD/SD' from 'CCC-/C'. S&P also
affirmed the local currency sovereign credit ratings at 'SD/SD'.
There is no outlook on 'SD' ratings.

On April 9, the TCR-LA reported that Moody's Investors Service
downgraded the Government of Argentina's foreign-currency and
local-currency long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings to Ca
from Caa2.




===========
B R A Z I L
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NATURA COSMETICOS: Fitch Lowers LT IDR & Unsec. Rating to 'BB-'
---------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has downgraded Natura Cosmeticos S.A.'s Long-Term
Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating and Local Currency IDR to
'BB-' from 'BB', as well as its unsecured USD750 million notes due
2023 to 'BB-'from 'BB'. The National Scale Rating was downgraded to
'AA-(bra)' from 'AA(bra)'. The Rating Outlook remains Negative.

In conjunction with these rating actions, Fitch has affirmed Avon
Products, Inc.'s LT IDR at 'B'+, and its unsecured notes at
'B'/'RR5'. In a related move, Fitch has also affirmed the 'B+' LT
IDR of Avon International Operations, Inc., and its 'BB+' secured
bond due in 2022, in addition to Avon International Capital PLC's
'BB+' secured bond due in 2022. The Rating Outlook has been revised
to Stable from Positive.

The downgrade of Natura Cosmeticos' ratings and the revision in
Avon's Outlook to Stable from Positive reflects challenges faced by
these two sister companies that are both wholly owned by Natura&Co
Holding S.A. These challenges include: elevated medium-term
refinancing risk, integration risk involved with achieving
synergies while growing top-line revenues, fast-changing industry
dynamics, and headwinds presented by negative growth rates in
Brazil, Europe and the U.S. due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The rating of Avon, one notch below Natura Cosmeticos, reflects
Avon's higher leverage, weaker business position, and higher
refinancing risk. Avon's debt is not guaranteed by either Natura
Cosmeticos or Natura&Co. Avon's rating of 'B+' with a Stable
Outlook reflects Fitch's expectation that during the next 12 to 24
months debt at Avon will likely be replaced by debt with guarantees
from the holding Natura&Co and that the consolidated credit quality
of the group of companies would not be below 'B+'.

The Negative Outlook for Natura Cosmeticos reflects risk that the
credit profile of both companies will merge during the next 12 to
24 months through refinancing activities that will tighten the
credit linkage between the two companies and that cash flow
pressure remains high due to unfavorable macroeconomic and industry
conditions.

Fitch projects that the consolidated revenues of Natura&Co will
decline by about 14% in 2020 and that the group's consolidated net
leverage will be around 4.8x. Natura&Co has around USD2.1 billion
of cross-border debt issuances in addition to local issuances
coming due during 2022 and 2023. The company recently announced its
intent to issue up to BRL2 billion (around USD390 million) of
equity, that together with a new issuance of local promissory notes
of BRL750 million completed during May will alleviate near-term
liquidity and financial covenants pressure.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Ratings Migration: Natura and Avon are separate legal entities that
are both wholly owned by Natura&Co. The bonds of both companies
have been issued by different legal entities that are domiciled in
different countries. In the medium term, Fitch expects the debt of
both entities to be replaced by debt that would include intra-group
and/or cross-guarantee structures. The ratings of both issuers
would likely migrate to the same level if this occurs. Strategic
ties are strong between Avon and Natura's operations in Latin
America and the company is attempting to generate material
operating synergies from the ownership of these two companies by
Natura&Co.

Large Business Scale: Avon's acquisition significantly increases
Natura&Co's business scale, enhances its consultant base to 4.15
million reps, expands its product portfolio and strengthens its
Latin American market presence. The combined entity will benefit
from up-sell opportunities in terms of channels and value
proposition. Natura&Co has announced an increase in the expected
synergies to USD300 million to USD400 million from a previous level
of USD200 million to 300 million; these synergies are expected be
captured mainly in Brazil and Latin America through the leveraging
of its manufacturing and distribution capabilities. In Fitch's
view, most of the savings will need to be reinvested to improve the
companies' competitive positions within the highly competitive
global beauty sector. Natura and Avon both have high exposure to
the decline in direct sales and are attempting to gravitate to an
omni-channel strategy.

Challenging Industry Dynamics: The CF&T industry is attractive due
to its resilience throughout economic cycles. Nevertheless,
pressure business dynamics are changing and sales volumes and
margins are under pressure due to a shift in the channel toward
e-commerce and specialty stores; traditional consumer companies are
facing intense competition from multi-national beauty giants that
have implemented omni-channel strategies, as well as smaller,
nimbler, fast-growing companies.

High Execution Risks: To compete against this challenging backdrop,
Natura&Co will have to maintain a strong pipeline of innovation to
compete in the fast-changing beauty trends and digitalize to engage
more directly with end consumers. These challenges will be
compounded by the challenges of integrating Avon's global
operations outside of Latin America (47% of Avon's revenues), which
have been pressured by declining active representatives and sales
volumes in complex emerging markets such as Russia. This
transaction follows Natura's acquisition of TBS late in 2017 for
EUR1 billion. Unlike Avon and Natura, TBS primarily operates
through retail stores.

Margin Under Pressure: The challenging industry dynamics have
pressured the margins of Avon and TBS. Avon's EBITDA margin
declined to 6.6% in 2018/2019 from an average of around 8.7%
between 2015 and 2017. TBS' margins have shown improvement during
2019 to 9.7% from 7.9% in 2018. In comparison, Natura Cosmeticos
had a 14.2% margin in 2018 and a 12.8% during 2019, which compares
to an average EBITDA margin of 16.9% between 2015 and 2017.
Natura's high margins reflect its strong brand value and
recognition, large operating scale, extensive direct-sales
structure and in-house manufacturing capabilities. For 2020, Fitch
expects the company's consolidated EBITDA margin to move around
9%.

Expanded Geographic Presence: The purchase of Avon slightly
improved the Natura&Co groups geographic diversification. Brazil
represents the bulk of Natura's current operations and accounts for
43% of revenues and 56% of EBITDA generation. As of 2019, Brazil
and Argentina represent 42% of Avon's operating profit, while
Europe, the Middle East and Africa account for 36%, North Latin
America accounts for 11% and Asia/Pacific for approximately 8%.

Medium Term Refinancing Risks: The combined entity, Natura&Co, will
have to seek long-term funding to avoid higher refinancing risks by
2021‒2023 as it has about USD2.1 billion of cross-border bonds
coming due, as well local debentures issuance. Natura has announced
a capital increase of up to BRL2 billion to be completed by June
2020, which aims to reinforce liquidity and net leverage ratios.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

Natura's 'BB-'/'AA-(bra)'/Negative Outlook reflects the combined
credit quality of Avon and Natura, challenges to execute the
turnaround in Avon's operations and medium-term refinancing risks.
Natura's 5.0x consolidated net leverage ratio, is high for the
rating category, however, it incorporates a deleverage trend by
2021 to around 4.0x. Natura has a solid business position in the
CF&T industry within Brazil, underpinned by strong brand
recognition, large scale, competitive cost structure and a large
direct-sales structure. Natura has the challenge of adapting its
business model to an omni-channel strategy and boosting its digital
platform while integrating TBS and becoming more integrated with
its sister company, Avon.

Avon's 'B+'/Positive Outlook reflects Fitch's expectation that the
ratings of Natura and Avon will gravitate over time to the same
level as the parent company for both entities, Natura&Co, moves
debt from these entities to the holding company.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

Fitch's Key Assumptions Within its Rating Case for the Issuer

  -- Fitch expects Natura&Co's revenue to decline around 14% in
2020, reflecting weaker volumes during 2Q20 and ongoing consumer
discretionary spending concerns throughout the year.

  -- Consolidated EBITDAR margins around 12% in 2020 and recovering
to around 14% in 2021.

  -- Reduced capex of around BRL600 million in 2020, with a
recovery to around BRL1 billion in 2021.

  -- No dividends payments in 2020.

  -- Natura to maintain its proactive approach on refinancing its
short-term debt avoiding refinancing risks.

For issuers with IDRs at 'B+' and below, Fitch performs a recovery
analysis for each class of the issuer's obligations. The issue
ratings are derived from the IDR and the relevant Recovery Rating
and notching, based on Fitch's recovery analysis that places an
enterprise value under a distressed scenario.

Fitch's recovery analysis assumes that Avon would be reorganized as
a going concern in bankruptcy rather than liquidated. Fitch has
assumed a 10% administrative claim. Fitch's GC EBITDA estimate
reflects Fitch's view of a sustainable, post-reorganization EBITDA
level upon which Fitch bases the enterprise valuation. This
enterprise value is based on an EBITDA of USD330 million in a
distressed scenario at a 4.0x EV/EBITDA multiple, which is at the
low end of recent consumer products transactions but considers
Avon's operating challenges.

Fitch applies a waterfall analysis to the post-default EV based on
the relative claims of the debt in the capital structure. The
agency's debt waterfall assumptions take into account the company's
total debt at March 31, 2020. These assumptions result in a below
average recovery rate for the unsecured bonds consistent with the
'RR5' range.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Natura Cosmeticos:

Factors That Could, Individually or Collectively, Lead to Positive
Rating Action/Upgrade

  -- Consolidated EBITDAR margins above 14% on consistent basis for
Natura as well as Natura&Co;

  -- Consolidated net adjusted debt/EBITDAR ratio around 3.5x on a
consistent basis for Natura as well as Natura&Co;

  -- Successful refinancing strategy with no major debt maturities
within two to three years for Natura and Natura&Co.

Factors That Could, Individually or Collectively, Lead to Negative
Rating Action/Downgrade

  -- Failure to receive at least BRL1 billion on capital
injection;

  -- Inability to refinance the USD900 million of secured bonds at
Avon by mid-2021;

  -- Consolidated EBITDAR margins declining to below 12% on a
recurrent basis;

  -- Consolidated net adjusted leverage above 4.5x by 2021;

  -- Competitive pressures leading to severe loss in market-share
for either Natura and Avon; or a significant deterioration in its
brands reputation.

Avon Products, Inc.:

Factors That Could, Individually or Collectively, Lead to Positive
Rating Action/Upgrade

  -- Increased legal linkage between the debt obligations of Avon
and Natura&Co.

Factors That Could, Individually or Collectively, Lead to Negative
Rating Action/Downgrade

  -- Failure to receive at least BRL1 billion on capital
injection;

  -- Inability to refinance the USD900 million of secured bonds at
Avon by mid-2021;

  -- Consolidated EBITDAR margins declining to below 12% on a
recurrent basis;

  -- Consolidated net adjusted leverage above 4.50x by 2021;

  -- Competitive pressures leading to severe loss in market-share
for either Natura and Avon; or a significant deterioration in its
brands reputation.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Non-Financial Corporate
issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a positive
direction) of three notches over a three-year rating horizon; and a
worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the 99th
percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative direction)
of four notches over three years. The complete span of best- and
worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating categories ranges
from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings are
based on historical performance.

LIQUIDITY AND DEBT STRUCTURE

Adequate Liquidity; Medium Term Refinancing Risks: Natura has a
track record of maintaining adequate liquidity and solid access to
the local credit market, but the company has an important challenge
to refinance its medium- and long-term debt (2021-2023). As of
March 31, 2020, the company had BRL4.6 billion in cash and
marketable securities which compares with BRL2.2 billion million of
short-term debt, including BRL209 million of forfait operation,
leading to a cash/short-term debt ratio of 2.1x. This compares with
an average ratio of 1.5x from 2015 to 2019. Natura has announced a
capital increase of up to BRL2 billion to be completed by June
2020, which aims to reinforce liquidity and net leverage ratios.

Fitch expects Natura will remain disciplined with its liquidity
position and will maintain a proactive approach in liability
management to avoid major exposure to refinancing risks in the
short term. During May 2020, the holding company and Natura
Cosmeticos issued BRL500 million and BRL250 million, respectively,
in promissory notes. Natura's ability to start to access
cross-border market by mid-2021 is essential to its current
ratings. Natura faces long-term debt amortization of BRL3.1 billion
in 2021, BRL5.3 billion in 2022, BRL4.5 billion in 2023 and BRL2.8
million from 2024 onwards.

On March 31, 2020, Natura had total debt of around BRL17.8 billion,
excluding on balance leasing obligations (BRL3.9 billion). Natura's
debt is mainly composed of BRL1.1 billion at the holding level,
BRL7.5 billion at Natura Cosmeticos (net of derivatives plus
forfeit obligation) and BRL9.1 billion at Avon. Cross-border bonds
(62%), local debentures (23%) and promissory notes (6%) are the
company's main debt.

REFERENCES FOR SUBSTANTIALLY MATERIAL SOURCE CITED AS KEY DRIVER OF
RATING

The principal sources of information used in the analysis are
described in the Applicable Criteria.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

The highest level of ESG credit relevance, if present, is a score
of 3. This means ESG issues are credit-neutral or have only a
minimal credit impact on the entity(ies), either due to their
nature or to the way in which they are being managed by the
entity(ies).

Avon International Capital P.L.C.

  - Senior secured; LT BB+; Affirmed

Natura Cosmeticos S.A.

  - LT IDR BB-; Downgrade

  - LC LT IDR BB-; Downgrade

  - Natl LT AA-(bra); Downgrade

  - Senior unsecured; LT BB-; Downgrade

Avon Products, Inc.

  - LT IDR B+; Affirmed

  - Senior unsecured; LT B; Affirmed

Avon International Operations, Inc.

  - LT IDR B+; Affirmed

  - Senior secured; LT BB+; Affirmed




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C A Y M A N   I S L A N D S
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SEAGATE HDD CAYMAN: S&P Rates Nine-Year Unsecured Notes 'BB+'
-------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings assigned its 'BB+' issue-level and '3' recovery
ratings to Fremont, Calif.-based hard disk drive maker Seagate
Technology PLC's new nine-year unsecured notes, the same as what
S&P had rated its existing unsecured debt. Seagate's subsidiary
Seagate HDD Cayman--the borrower of the existing debt--will
exchange portions of the existing notes due 2025 and 2027 into
nine-year notes. Yesterday, S&P rated the group's new 11-year
notes, the proceeds of which it will use to redeem portions of the
notes due 2022 and 2023.

S&P said, "Our 'BB+' issuer credit rating on Seagate is unchanged.
With S&P Global Ratings-adjusted gross leverage of 2.3x, the
company has ample cushion to our downgrade threshold of 3x. We
expect leverage to remain in the low-2x area through fiscal year
2021, supported by stable revenues and profitability from
hyperscale customers' continued strong demand, despite significant
macroeconomic weakness."

Issue Ratings--Recovery Analysis

Key analytical factors

-- S&P's '3' recovery rating on Seagate's unsecured debt is
unchanged.

-- S&P values the company on a going-concern basis because we
believe reorganization rather than liquidation would yield more
value for creditors due to the company's proprietary disk
technologies.

-- S&P values Seagate using a 6x multiple of S&P's projected
emergence EBITDA, which reflects its scale and intellectual
property.

-- S&P's simulated default scenario contemplates a default in 2025
due to significant declines in flash pricing that allows flash to
take a higher share of use cases from hard disks than it currently
expects.

Simulated default assumptions

-- Simulated year of default: 2025
-- Emergence EBITDA: $600 million
-- Multiple: 6x
-- The revolving credit facility is 85% drawn at default

Simplified waterfall

-- Net enterprise value (after 5% administrative costs): $3.4
billion
-- Senior unsecured debt claims: $5.5 billion
    --Recovery expectations: 50%-70% (rounded estimate: 60%)




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C O S T A   R I C A
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AERIS HOLDING: Moody's Alters Outlook on B1 Unsec. Rating to Neg.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service affirmed the Senior Unsecured rating of
Aeris Holding Costa Rica S.A. of B1 and changed the outlook to
negative from stable.

This rating action follows the outlook change to negative from
stable and B2 rating affirmation assigned to the Government of
Costa Rica.

RATINGS

Affirmations:

Issuer: Aeris Holding Costa Rica S.A.

Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Affirmed B1

Outlook Actions:

Issuer: Aeris Holding Costa Rica S.A.

Outlook, Changed To Negative From Stable

RATINGS RATIONALE

The B1 rating of Aeris, one-notch above the Government of Costa
Rica's rating of B2, reflects certain characteristics that limit
its exposure to Costa Rica: substantial international revenues,
access to international financing, and a transparent tariff setting
framework under the Contrato de Gestion Interesada.

Notwithstanding, the outlook change to negative from stable, in
line with the Government of Costa Rica, recognizes that Aeris has
various linkages with the Government of the Costa Rica. These
include the reliance on the CGI with the government under which the
airport operates and the tariff setting process that requires
government approval.

Moody's regards the coronavirus outbreak as a social risk under its
Environmental, Social and Governance framework, given the
substantial implications for public health and safety that lead to
severe restrictions to air travel and thus cancellations of airline
routes and closing of borders as well as enhanced requirements to
maintain health and safety in the airport operations.

The B1 rating with negative outlook also incorporates Moody's
assumption that the coronavirus outbreak will lead to severe cuts
in passenger traffic from March through July, with a gradual
recovery in passenger volumes starting by the third quarter 2020.
On a yearly basis, Moody's currently expects that the decline in
passenger traffic will amount to around 45-55% in 2020 compared to
the previous year. Moody's expects that the contraction in cash
flow generation resulting from the declining passenger levels will
lead to a deterioration of Aeris' liquidity position. According to
Aeris, liquidity available amounts to approximately $30 million (as
of May 2020), including a $6.3 million debt service reserve fund
that would cover 6 months of debt service payments, which according
to its projects would be able to meet operating shortfalls and debt
service.

On its Moody's Base Case scenario, poor cash generation will lead
Aeris to record Cash Interest Coverage ("CIC", cash flow available
for debt service / interest) close to 0.9x and Funds from
operations to debt close to 0.0%. Nonetheless Moody's expects that
as passenger volumes recover CIC and FFO/Debt will improve to
levels above 2.0x and 14% for 2021.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS

In light of the negative outlook, Moody's does not expect upward
pressure on the rating. The rating outlook could be stabilized if
Costa Rica's rating is stabilized and Aeris is projected to record
cash interest coverage ratios and FFO/Debt above 2.0x and 14%,
respectively.

Downward pressure on the rating could develop due if passenger
traffic do not recover as expected and poor cash flow generation
leads to weak projected financial metrics with cash interest
coverage ratio consistently below 1.5x or its FFO/Debt ratio
consistently below 7.5%. Further deterioration of the rating of the
Government of Costa Rica, could also lead to downward pressure on
the rating.

Aeris Holding Costa Rica S.A. is the operator of the country's main
international airport, Aeropuerto Internacional Juan Santamaria.

The principal methodology used in this rating was Privately Managed
Airports and Related Issuers published in September 2017.


INSTITUTO COSTARRICENSE: Moody's Alters Outlook on B1 CFR to Neg.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service affirmed the Costa Rican issuers
Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad and Reventazon Finance
Trust B1 ratings and changed the outlook to negative from stable.

This rating action follows the outlook change to negative from
stable and B2 rating affirmation of the Government of Costa Rica.

RATINGS

Affirmations:

Issuer: Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE)

  - Corporate Family Rating, Affirmed B1

  - Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Affirmed B1

Issuer: Reventazon Finance Trust

  - Corporate Family Rating, Affirmed B1

  - Senior Secured Regular Bond/Debenture, Affirmed B1

Outlook Actions:

Issuer: Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE)

  - Outlook, Changed To Negative From Stable

Issuer: Reventazon Finance Trust

  - Outlook, Changed To Negative From Stable

RATINGS RATIONALE

The affirmation of ICE's B1 ratings, one-notch above the Government
of Costa Rica's rating of B2, considers ICE's stronger credit
profile than the sovereign derived from its dominant position as
the largest vertically integrated utility in the country and
relatively strong financial metrics. The rating also reflects ICE's
autonomous operation and oversight from an independent regulator.
Importantly, its positioning of the rating considers that ICE's
regulatory framework will remain stable without any negative
interference that could affect its financial standing.

The affirmation of the rating of Reventazon Finance Trust follows
the affirmation of ICE's ratings. Reventazon is highly dependent on
ICE's financial performance given the obligations that ICE has
assumed under the contractual arrangements as sponsor, off-taker,
lessee and operator.

Notwithstanding ICE's strengths, the outlook change to negative is
in line with the Government of Costa Rica's rating outlook,
recognizing that ICE and Reventazon have various linkages with the
government. These include government ownership, revenues derived
from the same economic base, reliance on local financing, and
exposure to common risks such as foreign exchange, interest rates
and economic performance.

Given that ICE is fully owned by the Costa Rican government, it
falls under the scope of Moody's rating methodology for
government-related issuers. ICE's Baseline Credit Assessment, which
is a representation of the group's intrinsic creditworthiness
before taking into account possible extraordinary support from the
sovereign is b1. ICE's BCA captures its key role as an autonomous
government entity and its dominant position in the market, its
fully regulated nature and government ownership which creates
linkages with Costa Rica.

The Costa Rican government does not guarantee ICE's debt
obligations rated by Moody's. However, Moody's believes that there
is a "high" likelihood of government extraordinary support in the
case of financial distress for several reasons including
reputational given the company's status as a major government-owned
entity and its strategic importance to the country's economy
overall. Furthermore, Moody's views that the government of Costa
Rica and ICE are exposed to common risk factors as capture by the
"high" default dependence assigned to ICE.

The creditworthiness of Reventazon Finance Trust reflects the
credit profile of ICE, as the project is highly dependent on ICE's
financial performance given the obligations that it has assumed
under the contractual arrangements. In addition, ICE is required to
pay any shortfall of funds to service the debt, including any
accelerated debt service following a termination event of the key
contractual arrangements.

The negative rating outlook of ICE and Reventazon Finance Trust
follows from the negative outlook of the rating of the Government
of Costa Rica and Moody's expectation that the operating
environment under which these companies operate will remain
supportive.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS

In light of the current negative outlook on the ratings of the
Costa Rican government, Moody's does not expect upward pressure on
ICE's or Reventazon's ratings.

A further downgrade of the Government of Costa Rica could lead to a
negative rating action for ICE. Additionally, if ICE's indebtedness
increases significantly above anticipated levels such that the
credit metrics deteriorate and cash flow interest coverage falls
below 2.0x or RCF to debt declines below 6% for an extended period,
it also could generate negative pressures on the ratings.

A downgrade of ICE's ratings would also likely result in a
downgrade of Reventazon Finance Trust's ratings.

The methodologies used in these ratings were Regulated Electric and
Gas Utilities published in June 2017.


[*] Moody's Alters Outlook on Costa Rican Banks to Negative
-----------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service has changed the outlook to negative from
stable on the ratings of both Banco Nacional de Costa Rica and
Banco de Costa Rica. At the same time, Moody's affirmed all of
BNCR's and BCR's ratings and assessments, including their B2
long-term local currency deposit ratings, B3 foreign currency
deposit ratings and their b2 baseline credit assessments. The
rating agency also affirmed BNCR's B2 long-term foreign currency
senior unsecured debt rating.

The rating actions follow Moody's affirmation of Costa Rica's B2
government bond rating and change in outlook to negative from
stable.

The outlook change on BNCR and BCR reflects Moody's assessment that
the sharp recession and higher fiscal deficits expected for Costa
Rica in 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak, will likely have a
direct negative impact on the banks' credit profile, mainly through
potentially lower government's capacity to provide support, and a
deterioration on the banks' asset quality and profitability.
Moody's regards the coronavirus outbreak as a social risk under its
ESG framework, given the substantial implications for public health
and safety.

The following ratings and assessments were affirmed:

Banco Nacional de Costa Rica

Long-term local currency deposit rating, at B2, outlook changed to
negative from stable

Long-term foreign currency deposit rating, at B3, outlook changed
to negative from stable

Long-term foreign currency senior unsecured debt rating, at B2,
outlook changed to negative from stable

Long-term local and foreign currency counterparty risk ratings, at
B1

Short-term local and foreign currency deposit and counterparty risk
ratings, at Not Prime

Baseline credit assessment and adjusted baseline credit assessment,
at b2

Long-term counterparty risk assessment, at B1(cr)

Short-term counterparty risk assessment of Not Prime(cr)

Banco de Costa Rica

Long-term local currency deposit rating, at B2, outlook changed to
negative from stable

Long-term foreign currency deposit rating, at B3, outlook changed
to negative from stable

Long-term local and foreign currency counterparty risk ratings, at
B1

Short-term local and foreign currency deposit and counterparty risk
ratings, at Not Prime

Baseline credit assessment and adjusted baseline credit assessment,
at b2

Long-term counterparty risk assessment, at B1(cr)

Short-term counterparty risk assessment of Not Prime(cr)

Outlook Actions:

Banco Nacional de Costa Rica and Banco de Costa Rica

Outlook changed to negative, from stable

RATINGS RATIONALE

The change in outlook to negative on BCR and BNCR's ratings was
prompted by the recent similar action on Costa Rica's B2 bond
rating, which mainly reflects the expected impact on Costa Rica's
funding needs, and the related increased risk of funding pressures,
resulting from the coronavirus shock. The pandemic has led to a
sharp recession and higher fiscal deficits, which will require the
government to increase its borrowing, which in the past has led to
funding stress. The rating action also considers its expectation
that, as a consequence of the pandemic shock, the banks'
fundamentals, especially their asset quality and profitability,
will deteriorate sharply.

The affirmation of BCR's and BNCR's ratings and assessments
reflects Moody's views that the banks' key fundamental strengths,
including their favorable funding profile -based on their ample
access to a broad base of retail deposits- and ample liquidity
buffers, are consistent with their b2 BCAs, despite the negative
pressure of weakening economic conditions. These strengths are
offset by consistently modest profitability, resulting from the
mandatory transfers to government entities, and relatively weak
efficiency, which limits internal capital generation. In addition,
the banks had already been facing a gradual deterioration in asset
quality even before the coronavirus outbreak, due to slower
economic growth, increasing unemployment and borrowers' exposure to
foreign-currency risk because part of the loans are granted in
foreign-currency to local-currency earners.

The rating actions reflect the high underlying inter-linkages
between the banks' standalone credit risk profiles and that of the
sovereign, derived from their direct and indirect exposures to the
sovereign risk in the form of government securities holdings and a
potential deterioration in the operating environment. The actions
also consider the potentially weaker fiscal capacity of the
government of Costa Rica to provide financial support to banks in
an event of stress, as reflected in the negative outlook of the
sovereign rating.

BNCR and BCR's local currency deposit ratings, as well as BNCR's
foreign currency debt rating remain in line with Costa Rica's
government bond rating at B2. The banks' B3 foreign currency
deposit ratings are constrained by Costa Rica's sovereign ceiling
for foreign currency deposits. The ratings reflect Moody's
assessment of full support from the government, which is based on
the government's 100% ownership of the banks, its guarantee of
their senior obligations under Article 4 of the Banking Law, the
banks' public policy mandate, and the importance of their deposit
and loan franchise within the Costa Rican financial system.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS

Considering that BNCR and BCR's ratings are positioned at the level
of the Costa Rican sovereign rating, their ratings could be
downgraded in the event of a downgrade of Costa Rica's sovereign
bond rating. Additionally, the banks' BCAs could face downward
pressure if their asset quality, profitability, or capital
deteriorate materially. However, if the banks' BCAs were lowered
without a preceding downgrade of the sovereign rating, their
ratings could be maintained due to its assessment of full support
to the banks from the government.

An upgrade is not expected at this moment given the negative
outlook, although the banks' ratings could face upward pressure or
their outlook could be stabilized if a similar action were taken on
the Costa Rican sovereign rating.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Banks
Methodology published in November 2019.




=============
E C U A D O R
=============

ECUADOR: Investors Organize as Country Talks Begin
--------------------------------------------------
Jo Bruni at The Latin Finance reports that investors holding
several of Ecuador's sovereign bonds said that they had formed a
committee to conduct talks with the government over a debt
restructuring plan as the nation grapples with the COVID-19
pandemic.

"The committee is representative of Ecuador's bondholder base and
includes holdings across each series of the bonds," the
institutional bondholders said in a statement obtained by the news
agency.

The committee added that it has hired BroadSpan Capital and UBS as
financial advisers in the negotiations.

The primary objective is to facilitate "constructive dialog" and
ensure that "the interests of all holders of Ecuador's
international bonds are considered and protected in any
re-profiling effort," the committee said, adding that bondholders
are "sensitive to the challenges Ecuador is facing," according to
The Latin Finance.

"The committee plans to conduct any interactions with the
authorities in a manner that is consistent with the G20-endorsed
Principles for Stable Capital Flows and Fair Debt Restructuring,
which includes the same commitments as those outlined by
authorities," it said, the report notes.

The announcement came one day after Deputy Finance Minister Esteban
Ferro kicked off negotiations through a video conference where he
offered investors an update on Ecuador's macroeconomic situation,
debt management strategy and the next steps in the process, the
report relays.

The objective is to launch an exchange offer to the investor
community around the end of June or first week of July, and to
finalize the transaction by the end of next month, Ferro said, the
report discloses.

In April, creditors had agreed to defer taking payment on Ecuador's
bonds until August to provide time for negotiations, the report
notes.

Ferro underscored the limits of fiscal consolidation in the short
term, given the need to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and as well as
the need to reactivate the economy, the report relays.  He also
underlined that the country was still struggling with a $3.5
billion financing gap for 2020, the report notes.

In the short term, Ecuador is seeking immediate liquidity relief to
face the COVID-19 outbreak amid the collapse in oil prices, Ferro
said in the video conference, "by way of reduced coupon payments in
the short term followed by gradual increases and no principal
amortizations in the short term," the report says.

In the medium term, Ecuador must lower its gross financing needs to
less than 6% of GDP, a threshold set by the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) for 2025 to 2030. "This highlights the need for debt
relief," Ferro said, the report relays.

Ecuador owes $12.3 billion, or 23% of its total debt to
multilateral lenders at an average rate of 3.8%, the report notes.
Bilateral debt, composed mostly of debt to China, totals $6.5
billion, or 12% of all debt, at an average rate of 4.2%, the report
relays. International bonds, totaling $17.7 billion represent 33%
of all debt and carry an average interest rate of 8.7%, Ferro said,
the report notes.

Ferro said that Ecuador plans to continue seeking new money from
multilateral lenders, from which the country has secured funding
amounting to $3.4 billion in 2020, because significant debt
payments for the international bonds begin in 2022, the report
says.  "The debt management exercise will aim at smoothing these
financing walls," Ferro said, the report notes.

Local debt, which represents approximately 25% of Ecuador's total
debt, totals $13.3 billion. "It is important to mention, that
within domestic debt, we're accounting close to $6 billion of
arrears," Ferro said, the report adds.

                About Ecuador

The Republic of Ecuador is a country in northwestern South America.
The sovereign state of Ecuador is a middle-income representative
democratic republic and a developing country that is highly
dependent on commodities, namely petroleum and agricultural
products.  Lenin Boltaire Moreno Garces is the county's current
President, who has been in office since May 2017.  As of May 12,
2020, Ecuador has defaulted on sovereign debt in 2020.

On April 3, 2020, Moody's Investors Service downgraded the
long-term foreign-currency issuer and senior unsecured rating of
the Government of Ecuador to Caa3 from Caa1 and changed the outlook
to negative from stable.  Moody's decision to downgrade Ecuador's
rating reflects the increased and now very high probability of a
restructuring, distressed exchange or default on Ecuador's market
debt as a result of the economic and financial shock the country is
experiencing due to the coronavirus outbreak that has led to
extremely tight financing conditions for Ecuador.

On April 13, 2020, S&P Global Ratings lowered its long- and
short-term sovereign credit ratings on Ecuador to 'SD/SD' from
'CCC-/C'. S&P removed the ratings from CreditWatch.  S&P said
Ecuador's already large budgetary financing needs have been
exacerbated by the plunge in global oil prices and the negative
global economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The country is one
of the worst affected by the virus outbreak in the region.

Also, in mid April 2020, Fitch lowered Ecuador's longterm foreign
currency issuer default rating to C from CC.  The 'C' rating
reflects Fitch's view that a sovereign default of some kind is
imminent following the "consent solicitation" made by the
Ecuadorian government to defer external bond payments while it
pursues a comprehensive restructuring.  A deferment in payments, if
agreed to by bondholders, would constitute a distressed debt
exchange in Fitch's view.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America,
Egan-Jones Ratings Company, on May 18, 2020, downgraded the foreign
currency and local currency senior unsecured ratings on debt issued
by the Republic of Ecuador to CCC- from CCC+. EJR also downgraded
the rating on commercial paper issued by the Company to D from C.




=============
J A M A I C A
=============

JAMAICA: Resolves Issues That Hampered Payment Under CARE Program
-----------------------------------------------------------------
RJR News reports that Jamaica Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke has
said some of the issues which hampered the payment of benefits to
thousands of applicants under the Government's CARE program have
now been ironed out.

Clarke disclosed that the Ministry of Finance had cited incorrect
banking information as the main reason why the applicants had not
yet been paid, according to RJR News.

Clarke said the individuals were informed of the errors, the report
notes.

"We have been working with the banks themselves and the CEOs, they
are heavily involved. I am happy to report that we have made
substantial progress . . . As of today, I am informed that this is
because of the input and intervention of management . . . ," the
report relays.

The Finance Minister, who gave the update in Parliament, revealed
that several retirees had suffered a setback in getting CARE
benefits, the report discloses.

This was due to a challenge caused by their former employers, the
report adds.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America, S&P
Global Ratings revised on April 16, 2020 its outlook on Jamaica to
negative from stable. At the same time, S&P affirmed its 'B+'
long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings, its
'B' short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings
on the country, and its 'BB-' transfer and convertibility
assessment.

The TCR-LA also reported that Fitch Ratings, in April 2020, revised
Jamaica's Outlook to Stable from Positive. The Long-Term
Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating is affirmed at B+. The
Outlook change reflects the shock to Jamaica from the coronavirus
pandemic, which is expected to lead to a sharp contraction in its
main sources of foreign currency revenues: tourism, remittances and
alumina exports.




=====================
P U E R T O   R I C O
=====================

WESTERN HOST: Puerto Rico Tourism Says Plan Disclosures Inadequate
------------------------------------------------------------------
Puerto Rico Tourism Company objects to the approval of the
Disclosure Statement filed by Western Host Associates, Inc.

Puerto Rico Tourism points out that Debtor failed to include the
entire Puerto Rico Tourism Company's claim as a priority tax claim
subject to payment under Section 507(a)(8) of the Bankruptcy Code.

Puerto Rico Tourism Company further points out that the Disclosure
Statement filed by Debtor should also be rejected because it fails
to provide adequate information for the Puerto Rico Tourism Company
to make an informed judgment as to the viability of the plan of
reorganization proposed by Debtor.

Puerto Rico Tourism Company's counsel:

     Giselle Lopez Soler
     LAW OFFICES OF GISELLE LOPEZ SOLER
     PMB 257
     Rd. 19 1353
     Guaynabo, PR 00966
     Tel. (787) 667-0941
     Email gls@lopezsolerlaw.com

                  About Western Host Associates

Western Host Associates, Inc., owns a four-story commercial hotel
building located at 202 San Jose Street, Old San Juan, Puerto
Rico.

The hotel is currently non-operational and is valued by the company
at $1.35 million.

The company previously sought bankruptcy protection on Nov. 14,
2012 (Bankr. D.P.R. Case No. 12-09093) and on May 19, 2011 (Bankr.
D.P.R. Case No. 11-04152).

Western Host Associates recently sought protection under Chapter 11
of the Bankruptcy Code (Bankr. D.P.R. Case No. 18-02696) on May 15,
2018.

In the petition signed by Luis Alvarez, president, the Debtor
disclosed $1.36 million in assets and $4.82 million in liabilities.


Judge Brian K. Tester oversees the case.  The Debtor tapped
Gratacos Law Firm, PSC, as its legal counsel and the Law Offices of
Jose R. Olmo-Rodriguez, as special counsel.




=================
V E N E Z U E L A
=================

VENEZUELA: Announces Fuel Price Hike in Historic Policy Shift
-------------------------------------------------------------
Fabiola Zerpa and Patricia Laya at Aljazeera News reports that
Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro said fuel prices would
increase starting in June, a historic policy shift after decades of
subsidies that have allowed Venezuelans to essentially fill their
tanks for free.

Fuel will be sold at 5,000 bolivars (2.5 U.S. cents) per liter at
gas stations nationwide starting, including 200 stations that will
sell premium fuel at the equivalent of 50 U.S. cents a liter,
Maduro said. Gasoline will be limited to 120 liters (30 gallons)
per month per vehicle, according to Aljazeera News.

"This is a war, my dear fellow countrymen who listen to me, a
brutal war," Maduro said from the presidential palace, the report
relays.  The U.S. is "persecuting any company that brings a drop of
gasoline to Venezuela," the report notes.

The announcement follows the arrival of Iranian tankers loaded with
millions of barrels of gasoline as Venezuela faces a crippling fuel
shortage, following years of mismanagement, lack of investment and
mounting U.S. sanctions, the report notes.

An overhaul of the country's gasoline distribution system
represents a stark shift in national culture, loosening the state's
monopoly over the country's central asset, the report discloses.
While PDVSA would recover millions currently lost in subsidies,
gasoline price hikes are a sensitive matter for the oil-rich nation
-- when prices were raised in 1989, Caracas burst into violent
riots, the report says.

Venezuelans have spent hours or even days in line for gasoline in
some areas of the country as fuel shortages intensify in the past
two months.  Those who can are paying as much as the equivalent of
$4 a liter in the black market, the report relates.

"Venezuela must charge international prices for gasoline sooner
rather than later, to prevent it from being stolen from Colombia
and the Caribbean," Maduro said.  "That should not be decreed or
done haphazardly. It should be done through planning and strategy,"
the report adds.

                              Venezuela

Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a
country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a
continental landmass and a large number of small islands and islets
in the Caribbean sea.  The capital is the city of Caracas.

Hugo Chavez was president to Venezuela from 1999 to 2013.  The
Chavez presidency was plagued with challenges, which included a
2002 coup d'etat, a 2002 national strike and a 2004 recall
referendum.  Nicolas Maduro was elected president in 2013 after the
death of Chavez.  Maduro won a second term at the May 2018
Venezuela elections, but this result has been challenged by
countries including Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Canada,
Germany, France and the United States who deemed it fraudulent and
moved to recognize Juan Guaido as president.

The presidencies of Chavez and Maduro have challenged Venezuela
with a socioeconomic and political crisis.  It is marked by
hyperinflation, climbing hunger, poverty, disease, crime and death
rates, social unrest, corruption and emigration from the country.

S&P Global Ratings, in May 2019, removed its long- and short-term
local currency sovereign credit ratings on Venezuela from
CreditWatch with negative implications and affirmed them at
'CCC-/C'. The outlook on the long-term local currency rating is
negative. At the same time, S&P affirmed its 'SD/D' long- and
short-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings on Venezuela.

Moody's credit rating (long term foreign and domestic issuer
ratings) for Venezuela was last set at C with stable outlook in
March 2018.  Meanwhile, Fitch's long term issuer default rating for
Venezuela was last in 2017 at RD and country ceiling was CC. Fitch,
on June 27, 2019, affirmed then withdrew the ratings due to the
imposition of U.S. sanctions on Venezuela.



                           *********


S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America is a daily newsletter
co-published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Fairless
Hills, Pennsylvania, USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, D.C.,
USA, Marites O. Claro, Joy A. Agravante, Rousel Elaine T.
Fernandez, Julie Anne L. Toledo, Ivy B. Magdadaro, and Peter A.
Chapman, Editors.

Copyright 2020.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2746.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic
re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without prior
written permission of the publishers.

Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to
be reliable, but is not guaranteed.

The TCR Latin America subscription rate is US$775 per half-year,
delivered via e-mail.  Additional e-mail subscriptions for members
of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription or
balance thereof are US$25 each.  For subscription information,
contact Peter A. Chapman at 215-945-7000.
.


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