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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
Monday, January 3, 2022, Vol. 23, No. -4
Headlines
A R G E N T I N A
ARGENTINA: Seeks to Agree on Economic Plan with IMF
B R A Z I L
BRAZIL: Bovespa Ends 2021 With Annual Decline
BRAZIL: Lending Up in Nov. Despite Deteriorating Credit Conditions
P U E R T O R I C O
REMLIW INC: Seeks Court Approval to Hire Gonzalez as Notary Public
T R I N I D A D A N D T O B A G O
TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: Retail Suffering but Manufacturing Stays Afloat
X X X X X X X X
[*] BOND PRICING: For the Week Dec. 27 to Dec. 31, 2021
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A R G E N T I N A
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ARGENTINA: Seeks to Agree on Economic Plan with IMF
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globalinsolvency.com, citing Reuters, reports that Argentina's
government plans to agree on its new multiyearx economic plan with
International Monetary Fund staff before sending the proposal to
Congress, Economy Minister Martin Guzman said on local radio.
"First, we will seek to reach an agreement with IMF staff, and then
it will be sent to Congress for ratification," the minister said in
comments to local station Radio Con Vos. Earlier in the day, a
government source, who asked not to be named, outlined the same
plans in an interview with Reuters, according to
globalinsolvency.com.
The IMF did not respond to a request for comment.
After getting walloped in a recent midterm congressional election,
the administration of President Alberto Fernandez is facing
political headwinds as average Argentines struggle with high
poverty rates and inflation of more than 50% a year that has gutted
their spending power, the report notes.
Guzman told the radio interviewer that no abrupt devaluation of the
local peso currency was being planned, despite rampant market
speculation to the contrary as the local peso has weakened 20.4%
over the last 12 months, the report relays.
The Argentine government would also like to resolve the rollover of
$45 billion in outstanding debt owed to the IMF this year, Guzman
added, 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.
Fitch Ratings' affirmed Argentina's 'CCC' Long-Term
Foreign-Currency and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs)
at 'CCC' last Oct. 18, 2021, reflecting macroeconomic imbalances
and acute financing constraints that continue to undermine debt
repayment capacity following 2020 bond restructurings, and
significant political uncertainty around how these challenges will
be addressed.
Standard & Poor's credit rating for Argentina stands at CCC+ with
stable outlook, which was a rating upgrade issued on Sept. 8, 2020.
Moody's credit rating for Argentina was last set at Ca on Sept. 28,
2020. DBRS' credit rating for Argentina is CCC, given on Sept. 11,
2020.
As reported by The Troubled Company Reporter - Latin American, DBRS
noted that the recent upgrade in Argentina's ratings (September
2020) follows the closing of two debt restructuring agreements
between the Argentine government and private creditors. The first
restructuring involved $65 billion in foreign-law bonds. The deal
achieved the requisite participation necessary to trigger the
collective action clauses and finalize the restructuring on 99% on
the aggregate principal outstanding of eligible bonds. DBRS added
that the debt restructurings conclude a prolonged default and
provide the government with substantial principal and interest
payment relief over the next four years.
DBRS further relayed that Argentina is also seeking a new agreement
with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to replace the canceled
2018 Stand-by Agreement. Formal negotiations on the new financing
began in November 2020. Obligations to the IMF amount to $44
billion, with major repayments coming due in 2022 and 2023.
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B R A Z I L
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BRAZIL: Bovespa Ends 2021 With Annual Decline
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Richard Mann at Rio Times Online reports that for the first time
since 2015, when the country entered an economic recession, the
Brazilian stock market is expected to register an annual decline in
2021.
The Ibovespa, the main stock index of the B3, closed the trading
session on Dec. 29 at 104,107 points, accumulating in the partial
year a loss of 12.53%, according to Rio Times Online.
Dec. 30 was the last trading session of the year.
Six years ago, when the impeachment process of former president
Dilma Rousseff (PT) began, Ibovespa accumulated a loss of 13.3%,
the report recalls.
About Brazil
Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world and third largest
in the Americas. Jair Bolsonaro is the current president, having
been sworn in on Jan. 1, 2019.
Standard & Poor's credit rating for Brazil stands at BB- with
stable outlook (April 2020). S&P's 'BB-/B' long-and short-term
foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings for Brazil
were affirmed in December 2021 with stable outlook. Fitch
Ratings' credit rating for Brazil stands at 'BB-' with a negative
outlook (November 2020). Fitch's 'BB-' Long-Term Foreign and
Local Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) has been affirmed
in May 2021. Moody's credit rating for Brazil was last set at Ba2
with stable outlook (April 2018). DBRS's credit rating for Brazil
is BB (low) with stable outlook (March 2018).
BRAZIL: Lending Up in Nov. Despite Deteriorating Credit Conditions
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Rio Times Online reports that credit conditions in Brazil worsened
in November due to higher interest rates, Central Bank figures
showed, although lending continued to grow for businesses and
consumers.
Credit spreads, which reflect the gap between banks' rates to grant
a loan and their cost to raise money, increased to 23.4 percentage
points in November from 22.9 percentage points in October,
according to Rio Times Online.
About Brazil
Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world and third largest
in the Americas. Jair Bolsonaro is the current president, having
been sworn in on Jan. 1, 2019.
Standard & Poor's credit rating for Brazil stands at BB- with
stable outlook (April 2020). S&P's 'BB-/B' long-and short-term
foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings for Brazil
were affirmed in December 2021 with stable outlook. Fitch
Ratings' credit rating for Brazil stands at 'BB-' with a negative
outlook (November 2020). Fitch's 'BB-' Long-Term Foreign and
Local Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) has been affirmed
in May 2021. Moody's credit rating for Brazil was last set at Ba2
with stable outlook (April 2018). DBRS's credit rating for Brazil
is BB (low) with stable outlook (March 2018).
=====================
P U E R T O R I C O
=====================
REMLIW INC: Seeks Court Approval to Hire Gonzalez as Notary Public
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Remliw, Inc. seeks approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the
District of Puerto Rico to hire Ricardo Miguel Gonzalez, Esq., a
notary public, to assist in the closing of the sale of its real
property in Arecibo, P.R.
Mr. Gonzalez has agreed to be compensated on a fixed and
contingent
fee equivalent to 0.005% of the gross sale price of the property.
As disclosed in court filings, Mr. Gonzalez is a "disinterested
person" within the meaning of Section 101(14) of the Bankruptcy
Code.
Mr. Gonzalez can be reached at:
Ricardo Miguel Gonzalez
Apt. 1B, Village at The Point Cond.
2318 Cacique St.
SJ, PR 00913
Mobile: 502 536-6312
Email: gonzalezcruzlex@gmail.com
About Remliw Inc.
Remliw Inc. is a privately held company, which owns a motel located
at Carr 639 Km 2.1 Arecibo, P.R.
Remliw filed a voluntary Chapter 11 petition (Bankr. D.P.R. Case
No. 19-01179) on March 2, 2019, listing $3,300 in assets and
$2,776,090 in total liabilities. The case is jointly administered
with Monte Idilio Inc.'s Chapter 11 case (Bankr. D.P.R. Case No.
19-03828) filed on July 1, 2019.
Judge Edward A. Godoy oversees the cases.
Jose F. Cardona Jimenez, Esq., at Cardona Jimenez Law Offices, PSC
serves as the Debtors' legal counsel. The Debtors also tapped the
services of Carlos Quintana-Santiago, a certified public accountant
in Mayaguez, P.R.
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T R I N I D A D A N D T O B A G O
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TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: Retail Suffering but Manufacturing Stays Afloat
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Trinidad Express reports that while the Covid-19 pandemic continues
to have a significant impact on the world's economies, various
sectors in Trinidad and Tobago continue to show their resilience.
Covid-19 impacted the retail sector hard because the lockdowns and
layoffs reduced the aggregate income in the domestic economy as
well as making people with jobs and income to be more cautious
about how they spend their money, according to Trinidad Express.
In its 2021 Year in Review, the Express Business spoke to a few key
persons in the manufacturing, energy and business sectors, about
how their respective industries feared for a second year dealing
with the deadly virus that has disrupted the world's economies, the
report notes.
Chief executive officer of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of
Industry Commerce Gabriel Faria, said the pandemic has severely
impacted the small and medium enterprises and the self-employed,
but the financial impact has not been felt equally amongst small
business owners, the report relays.
"While some are getting back on their feet, a significant
percentage continue to struggle. Covid has had a profound impact
on the finances of self-employed people, and it's clear for many
small businesses, the crisis is far from over," Faria told the
Express Business.
In giving an outlook for the sector, Faria said the reality is the
strong, cash-and-asset rich have fared relatively well, as was
evident with the results of the companies on the T&T Stock
Exchange. This also applies to the banks whose results show they
have not been negatively impacted, the report notes.
"Many small and medium businesses have closed their physical
locations, either opting to sell online or even from their homes.
There are industries and individuals whose businesses have been
closed for almost two years and they have had to change their
business models or get into new types of businesses. Many just
closed their doors, while others suffered significant declines in
turnover resulting in operating losses," he said, the report
relays.
According to Faria, this crisis has created a practical and ethical
imperative for Trinbagonians to focus less on our own agendas, the
report notes.
"There are opportunities, however we need Government, labour and
business to come together with a congruence of goals focused on
restarting the economy by saving lives and livelihoods. This means
we must achieve a vaccination level of 80 per cent by the middle of
2022 for the latest and the Government must also provide meaningful
support to the MSMEs," the Chamber CEO said, the report discloses.
New Stores in The Pandemic
Earlier this month, Express Business highlighted First Retail Inc
which opened its second Aeropostale store in Trincity Mall, the
report relays.
That opening brought to 11 the number of stores the group opened up
during the pandemic, the report says.
Managing director of the group of companies, 37-year-old Omar
Hadeed said it has been a very difficult period, but as a sector
that has faced numerous shifts in the past few years, the group was
able to adapt and continue to expand within a space that has faced
challenges from all angles, the report notes.
"There have been many discussions about whether e-commerce would
gobble up brick-and-mortar stores but the two are closely linked
and must work hand in hand," he added, says Trinidad Express.
Manufacturing
Sector Success
Despite setbacks due to the lockdowns, Trinidad and Tobago
Manufacturers Association (TTMA) president Tricia Coosal said from
the reports coming out of the Ministries of Trade & Industry and
Finance, non-energy export figures for 2021 have surpassed 2020
figures, the report relays.
"The non-energy manufacturing sector recognised that it was
imperative that they continue to produce and supply the export
market. Our producers not only continued to produce to facilitate
local demand, but ensured regional food supplies were not hampered
and/or curtailed in any deleterious manner," she said, the report
notes.
Coosal emphasized that notwithstanding the challenges, many
manufacturing companies were able to expand their operations beyond
their previous levels of exports, the report says.
"Kamri Investments was able to export containers to Jamaica and
Guyana by mid-2021 and have also secured orders from St Lucia,
Barbados and Curacao; RHS Marketing Ltd expanded to new regional
markets such as Martinique and secured new orders in North America;
the HADCO group of Companies, Nestle, Blue Waters, CGA, Label
House, SM Jaleel, Advanced Foam, ANSA McAL and Associated Brands
Industries Ltd (ABIL), among many others, are all doing well in the
regional and international markets," she added, the report
discloses.
Questioned on whether manufacturing companies had to shut their
doors, the TTMA president said no company belonging to the
association has signalled to them that they have been forced to
close their doors, the report notes.
"Some may have, due to circumstances (shut down period and limited
demand based on ports and borders being closed- morphed their
operations, downsized in some instances, curtailed production in
others, but no one completely closed their doors," she said, the
report relays.
Coosal said in 2022 the TTMA will be positioning itself to continue
to assist members with stability and expansion, notes the report.
"It is our hope, all things being equal, we will be able to host
our Trade and Investment Convention in 2022, which will generate
great economic activities for local suppliers and manufacturers,"
the report relays.
ABIL Success
In an interview in July, Associated Brands Industries Ltd, a local
manufacturer and distributor of snack foods, chocolate
confectionery, biscuits and breakfast cereals said it was seeking
to enter new export markets, as 65 per cent of the company's
revenue is earned in foreign exchange, the report relates.
In September, its signature candy bar Catch began selling in the
Republic of Cyprus, which is located in the eastern Mediterranean
Sea, the report relays.
Its executive director Nicholas Lok Jack, 43, said discussions
involved three years of back and forth, searching markets, getting
the right distributor and also getting distributors who are on the
same wavelength, the report discloses.
The businessman further noted that while Catch is in 20 other
markets, there are some markets that are more mature and some
markets where ABIL is still consolidating its position, the report
notes.
Energy Sector
According to Trinidad Express, despite the pandemic and supply
chain challenges, the energy sector has managed to deliver major
new gas development projects over the past year and new
developments are also in the pipeline. That's according to Energy
Chamber chief executive officer and president Dr Thackwray Driver,
the report relays.
Driver revealed that the rebound in commodity prices during the
year has obviously provided a welcome boost to operators and has
helped the industry recover from an even more difficult prior year,
the report discloses.
He noted that the clear recognition by the Government of both the
challenges posed by the energy transition and the opportunities
that the transition will create has helped focus industry
discussions on the longer-term future, the report notes.
Looking at 2022, Driver said it would be important to move forward
the decarburization agenda in parallel with this focus on
attracting upstream investment and to take advantage of the
opportunities that Trinidad & Tobago has in green and blue
hydrogen, carbon capture utilization and storage, energy
efficiency, lower carbon fuels and renewable energy, the report
relays.
"Caribbean regional integration in energy services remains a major
potential policy area to drive competitiveness and should be a
focus for all regional governments as we emerge from the pandemic.
The energy industry has been through a very difficult period but
has continued to deliver for the citizens and the Energy Chamber is
confident that it will continue to do so in the future," Driver
added, says the report.
Oil and Gas Company
Well Positioned
Canada's Touchstone Exploration, which operates on land in South
Trinidad, said it achieved "significant progress" in 2020 and 2021,
the report relays.
Chief executive officer and shareholder Paul Baay, in an interview
with Express Business in February, said the company's stock price
on the Toronto Stock Exchange last year February was US$0.35, and
earlier this year the stock sat at around US$2.50, the report
discloses.
That increased the overall value of the company from US$30 million
to about US$500 million, the report notes. He attributed the
increase in the company's value to the discoveries in Trinidad.
Asked how much capital expenditure Touchstone expected to spend
into 2022 in Trinidad, Baay said about US$24 million, the report
relays. But he added that assuming all the gas production comes on
stream as planned, the capital expenditure could be about US$40
million for 2022.
In September, Touchstone Exploration stated its Royston-1
exploration well encountered substantial hydrocarbon accumulations
based on drilling and wireline log data, the report relays.
The company said an aggregate 393 gross feet of hydrocarbon pay was
identified in two unique thrust sheets in the Herrera sands from
9,700 feet to total depth, with wireline logs indicating that the
well was in hydrocarbon pay at total depth, the report notes.
And earlier this month, the Canadian based company announced light
oil discoveries at its onshore Trinidad Royston-1 exploration well,
the report says.
"The recovered oil was light, sweet crude with an average 33-degree
API (corrected to 60-degree Fahrenheit) with sampling throughout
flow testing indicating an average 94 per cent oil cut with some
solution gas present but not measured," the report quoted the
company as saying.
It said the first and deepest Royston-1 completion and exploration
test was designed to evaluate an interval at the bottom of the well
in the intermediate sheet of the Herrera Formation, the report
adds.
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[*] BOND PRICING: For the Week Dec. 27 to Dec. 31, 2021
-------------------------------------------------------
Issuer Name Cpn Price Maturity Country Curr
----------- --- ----- -------- ------- ---
Noble Holding Internat 6.1 62.0 3/1/2041 KY USD
Provincia de Cordoba 7.1 74.7 8/1/2027 AR USD
YPF SA 16.5 67.3 5/9/2022 AR ARS
Argentine Republic Gov 8.3 74.5 12/31/2033 AR USD
AES Tiete Energia SA 6.8 1.2 4/15/2024 BR BRL
Enel Americas SA 5.8 32.7 6/15/2022 CL CLP
Cia Latinoamericana de 9.5 73.9 7/20/2023 AR USD
KrisEnergy Ltd 4.0 40.4 6/9/2022 SG SGD
Banco Macro SA 17.5 65.2 5/8/2022 AR ARS
City of Cordoba Argent 7.9 73.1 9/29/2024 AR USD
Odebrecht Finance Ltd 6.0 16.4 4/5/2023 KY USD
Odebrecht Finance Ltd 6.0 16.4 4/5/2023 KY USD
Provincia del Chaco Ar 4.0 0.0 12/4/2026 AR USD
YPF SA 16.5 67.3 5/9/2022 AR ARS
YPF SA 16.5 67.3 5/9/2022 AR ARS
Cia Energetica de Pern 6.2 1.1 1/15/2022 BR BRL
Polarcus Ltd 5.6 71.8 7/1/2022 AE USD
Argentine Republic Gov 8.3 72.9 12/31/2033 AR USD
Argentine Republic Gov 8.3 74.5 12/31/2033 AR USD
Cia Latinoamericana de 9.5 74.3 7/20/2023 AR USD
Noble Holding Internat 6.2 62.2 8/1/2040 KY USD
Province of Santa Fe 6.9 74.7 11/1/2027 AR USD
Provincia de Rio Negro 7.8 70.3 12/7/2025 AR USD
Argentine Republic Gov 0.5 27.6 12/31/2038 AR JPY
Fospar S/A 6.5 1.2 5/15/2026 BR BRL
Provincia de Rio Negro 7.8 70.4 12/7/2025 AR USD
Noble Holding Internat 5.3 60.5 3/15/2042 KY USD
Provincia de Cordoba 7.1 72.7 8/1/2027 AR USD
Provincia de Buenos Ai 7.9 75.3 6/15/2027 AR USD
Province of Santa Fe 6.9 74.7 11/1/2027 AR USD
Argentine Republic Gov 6.9 75.2 1/11/2048 AR USD
Argentina Bonar Bonds 5.8 75.2 4/18/2025 AR USD
Argentina Bonar Bonds 7.6 74.4 4/18/2037 AR USD
Avadel Finance Cayman 4.5 55.0 2/1/2023 US USD
Sylph Ltd 2.4 65.1 9/25/2036 KY USD
Banco Macro SA 17.5 65.2 5/8/2022 AR ARS
Odebrecht Finance Ltd 6.0 16.4 4/5/2023 KY USD
Esval SA 3.5 49.9 2/15/2026 CL CLP
Metrogas SA/Chile 6.0 41.6 8/1/2024 CL CLP
Province of Santa Fe 6.9 75.2 11/1/2027 AR USD
Argentine Republic Gov 8.3 72.9 12/31/2033 AR USD
Argentine Republic Gov 7.1 75.7 6/28/2117 AR USD
Provincia del Chaco Ar 9.4 74.8 8/18/2024 AR USD
Provincia de Rio Negro 7.8 70.3 12/7/2025 AR USD
Automotores Gildemeist 6.8 54.9 1/15/2023 CL USD
Argentine Republic Gov 8.3 72.9 12/31/2033 AR USD
Provincia del Chubut A 4.5 2208 3/30/2021 AR USD
Argentine Republic Gov 4.3 70.0 12/31/2033 AR JPY
Automotores Gildemeist 6.8 54.9 1/15/2023 CL USD
Province of Santa Fe 6.9 75.2 11/1/2027 AR USD
Argentine Republic Gov 6.3 74.1 11/9/2047 AR EUR
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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 2022. 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
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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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