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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

          Thursday, November 3, 2022, Vol. 23, No. 214

                           Headlines



A R G E N T I N A

ARGENTINA: Strike Hits Airports as Union Tensions Continue to Rise


B R A Z I L

BRAZIL: General Market Price Index Has 0.97% Deflation in October
BRAZIL: Had a Primary Surplus of US$2.1 Billion in September


C O L O M B I A

CREDIVALORES: S&P Affirms 'CCC+' ICR, Off CreditWatch Negative


D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: ECLAC Spread Awareness of "Income Inequality"
[*] DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Has Excellent Loan Ratings With IDB


H O N D U R A S

INVESTMENT ENERGY: S&P Affirms 'BB-' ICR, Outlook Stable


J A M A I C A

JAMAICA: PIAJ Seeks to Adopt Auto Enrolment to Address Crisis


X X X X X X X X

LATAM: Mexico and Brazil Stand Out in a Hard-Hit Region

                           - - - - -


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A R G E N T I N A
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ARGENTINA: Strike Hits Airports as Union Tensions Continue to Rise
------------------------------------------------------------------
Buenos Aires Times reports that following three weeks of tension
with the threat of a national strike, the teamsters concluded their
wage bargaining with an annual hike of 107 percent to be paid in
four quotas.

The trade union headed by Hugo and Pablo Moyano signed a wage
agreement at the Labour Ministry giving them a bonus of 100,000
pesos next year plus 10 percent extra for long-distance drivers,
according to Buenos Aires Times.  The agreement runs from next
Monday to November 1, 2023, the report notes.

The strike threatened by the Moyanos was thus defused as Hugo
Moyano signed the agreement with representatives of the transport
companies (Faetyl, Fadeeac and Catac) in the presence of the new
Labour Minister Raquel 'Kelly' Olmos, the report relays.

The increase will take the form of 27 percent next month, next
February and next May followed by 26 percent in August while the
bonus of 100,000 pesos will be paid between March and June. The
teamsters union houses some 200,000 truck-drivers, the report
notes.

The trade union had been standing firm on a wage demand of 131
percent with Hugo Moyano threatening strike action if "the
recognition which we workers deserve is denied."  At that stage,
the differences between the two sides were important since the
companies were only offering 84 percent, the report adds.

                        About Argentina

Argentina is a country located mostly in the southern half of
South America.  Its 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.

Last March 25, 2022, Argentina finalized agreement with the IMF
for a new USD44 billion Extended Funding Facility (EFF) intended
to fund USD40 billion in looming repayments of the defunct
Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), with an extra USD4 billion in up-front
net financing. This has averted the risk of a default to the IMF
and is facilitating a parallel rescheduling of Paris  Club debt.

As reported by The Troubled Company Reporter - Latin America on
Aug. 12, 2022, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its foreign and
local-currency sovereign credit ratings of 'CCC+/C' on the
Republic of Argentina. The outlook remains stable. S&P also
affirmed its national scale 'raBBB-' rating and its 'CCC+' transfer
and convertibility assessment. S&P said the stable outlook reflects
the challenges in managing pronounced economic imbalances ahead of
the 2023 national elections given disagreement on policy within the
government coalition and financing pressures in the local market.

Last April 14, 2022, Fitch Ratings affirmed Argentina's Long-Term
Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) at 'CCC'.
Fitch said Argentina's 'CCC' ratings reflect weak external
liquidity and pronounced macroeconomic imbalances that undermine
debt repayment capacity, and uncertainty regarding how much
progress can be made on these issues under a new IMF program.
On July 19, 2022, Fitch Ratings placed Argentina's Long-Term
Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and Long-Term Local
Currency IDR Under Criteria Observation (UCO) following the
conversion of the agency's Exposure Draft: Sovereign Rating
Criteria to final criteria. The UCO assignment indicates that
ratings may change as a direct result of the final criteria. It
does not indicate a change in the underlying credit profile, nor
does it affect existing Rating Outlooks.

Moody's credit rating for Argentina was last set at Ca on
Sept. 28, 2020.

DBRS has also confirmed Argentina's Long-Term Foreign Currency
Issuer Rating at CCC and Long-Term Local Currency Issuer Rating at
CCC (high) on July 21, 2022.




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B R A Z I L
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BRAZIL: General Market Price Index Has 0.97% Deflation in October
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Rio Times reports that Brazil's General Market Price Index (IGP-M)
recorded a deflation of 0.97% in October. A decrease was also
recorded in the previous month, at 0.95%.

According to the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV), the IGP-M has
reached an inflation rate of 5.58% for the year and 6.52% in the
last 12 months.

The broad Producer Price Index (IPA), which measures the wholesale
market, registered a deflation of 1.44% in October, following a
decline of 1.27% in September.

The National Construction Cost Index (INCC) was another sub-index
recorded a decline from September to October.

However, it continued to register inflation. The rate decreased
from 0.10% in September to 0.04% in October.

On the other hand, the Consumer Price Index (IPC), which measures
the retail market, recorded inflation of 0.5% in October, following
deflation of 0.08% in the previous month.

                            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.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on
July 18, 2022, Fitch Ratings has affirmed Brazil's Long-Term
Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating at 'BB-' and revised the
Rating Outlook to Stable from Negative.

On June 17, 2022, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'BB-/B' long-
and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings on Brazil.

Moody's Investors Service also affirmed on April 15, 2022,
Brazil's long-term Ba2 issuer ratings and senior unsecured bond
ratings, (P)Ba2 senior unsecured shelf ratings, and maintained the
stable outlook.

DBRS Inc. confirmed Brazil's Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency
Issuer Ratings at BB (low) on Aug 12, 2022. At the same time,
DBRS Morningstar confirmed the Federative Republic of Brazil's
Short-term Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Ratings.


BRAZIL: Had a Primary Surplus of US$2.1 Billion in September
------------------------------------------------------------
Rocco Caldero at Rio Times Online reports that the payment of
dividends by Petrobras and record revenues made the public accounts
register, in September, the second-highest positive result in the
historical series for the month.

Last month, Brazil's Central Government - National Treasury, Social
Security, and the Central Bank - registered a primary surplus of
R$11 billion (US$2.1 billion), the National Treasury announced,
according to Rio Times Online.

In nominal values, this is the second largest surplus for the month
since the beginning of the historical series, second only to
September 2010, the report relays.

Discounting inflation by the National Wide Consumer Price Index
(IPCA), the result was the sixth best in the historical series,
which started in 1995, the report discloses.

The result was better than expected by financial institutions, the
report says.

According to the Fiscal Prism survey released monthly by the
Ministry of Economy, market analysts expected a negative result of
R$847.6 million in September, the report notes.

With the September result, the Central Government closed the first
nine months of the year with a positive result of R$33.8 billion,
the report recalls.

When corrected for inflation, this is the best result for January
to September 2013, the report relates.

The primary result represents the difference between revenue and
spending, disregarding the interest payment on public debt, the
report points out.

Despite the possibility of a deficit in the coming months, the
economic team estimates that the Central Government will close the
year with a primary surplus of R$13.6 billion, the first positive
annual result since 2013, the report points adds.

According to the National Treasury, the surplus could reach R$37.5
billion in 2022 were it not for the agreement on the control of
Campo de Marte Airport in Sao Paulo, the report relays.

Through the agreement, the Federal Government paid R$23.9 billion
to the City of Sao Paulo in exchange for the extinction of the
lawsuit that questioned the control of Campo de Marte Airport, in
Sao Paulo's capital, the report discloses.

The surplus forecast occurs even with the constitutional amendment
that will increase social spending by R$41.3 billion in the second
half of the year and with the tax breaks of R$71.6 billion that
will take effect in 2022, the report says.

The estimate was released in the latest edition of the Bimonthly
Report of Revenue and Expenditure Evaluation, the report notes.

                                Revenues

Revenues continue to grow faster than expenses, the report
recalls.

Last month, net revenues grew 14% compared to September last year
in nominal terms. After discounting inflation by the National Wide
Consumer Price Index (IPCA), the growth reached 6.4%, the report
relates.

In the same period, total expenses rose 6% in nominal values but
fell 1.1% after discounting inflation, the report points out.

Concerning tax payments, there was a growth of R$2.9 billion above
inflation in income tax, motivated mainly by the increase in
company profits, the report points adds.

In great part, this increase reflects the increase in profits of
energy and oil companies at the beginning of the year, which helps
to partially offset the tax breaks for industry and fuel, the
report relays.

The rise in oil prices on the international market also contributed
to Petrobras' record dividend payment, which totaled R$12.6 billion
in September, the report discloses.

The dividends are the portion of the company's profit to
shareholders, the report says.

In the case of state-owned companies, the National Treasury
receives most of the dividends since it is the main controlling
shareholder, the report notes.

With the rising oil price on the international market, revenues
from royalties grew R$1.7 billion (31.5%) above inflation last
month compared to September 2021, the report recalls.

Currently, the international barrel price is around US$90 because
of the war between Russia and Ukraine, the report relates.

                             Expenses

On the expenditure side, there was a drop of R$7.9 billion in
extraordinary credits and R$2.3 billion in health expenditures,
mainly the expenses associated with fighting the covid-19 pandemic,
the report relays.

However, this decline was offset by an increase in other
expenditures, the report discloses.

Spending on social programs rose after the constitutional amendment
that increased the value of the Brazil Aid and created the Taxi
Driver and Trucker Aid, the report notes.

With the Brazil Aid alone, the impact of the readjustment of the
minimum value of the benefit to R$600 corresponded to R$5 billion
in September, the report relates.

Year-to-date, the increase in discretionary spending (not
mandatory) with flow control reaches R$48.5 billion (43%) above the
IPCA, the report says.

This category includes social programs, such as Auxílio Brasil.

On the other hand, spending on federal civil servants fell by 7.3%
in the year to date, discounting inflation, the report relates.

The drop reflects the freezing of civil servants' salaries between
July 2020 and December 2021 and the lack of adjustments in 2022,
the report says.

Concerning investments (public works and equipment purchases), the
federal government invested R$29.5 billion in the year's first nine
months, the report relays.

The value represents a drop of 15.4%, discounting the IPCA compared
to the same period in 2021, the report points adds.

                            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.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on
July 18, 2022, Fitch Ratings has affirmed Brazil's Long-Term
Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating at 'BB-' and revised the
Rating Outlook to Stable from Negative.

On June 17, 2022, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'BB-/B' long-
and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings on Brazil.

Moody's Investors Service also affirmed on April 15, 2022,
Brazil's long-term Ba2 issuer ratings and senior unsecured bond
ratings, (P)Ba2 senior unsecured shelf ratings, and maintained the
stable outlook.

DBRS Inc. confirmed Brazil's Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency
Issuer Ratings at BB (low) on Aug 12, 2022. At the same time,
DBRS Morningstar confirmed the Federative Republic of Brazil's
Short-term Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Ratings.




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C O L O M B I A
===============

CREDIVALORES: S&P Affirms 'CCC+' ICR, Off CreditWatch Negative
--------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings removed ratings on Colombia's non-bank financial
institution (NBFI) Credivalores - Crediservicios SAS  from
CreditWatch with negative implications, and affirmed ratings at
'CCC+'. The outlook is negative.

On Oct. 28, 2022, Credivalores - Crediservicios SAS paid off its
$50 million 8.5% notes under its euro commercial paper (ECP)
program. Credivalores funded the payment through an exchange
offering, a secured credit line from shareholders, and the
company's cash resources.

Credivalores was able to service its debt in 2022. Despite
difficulties during 2022, the company honored all of its debt
obligations in a timely manner. The company had two major
maturities this year: $164 million of senior unsecured notes in
July and $50 million under its ECP program in October. However,
given investors' souring sentiment towards the regional NBFI sector
and given the amount of Credivalores' maturities, the company was
forced to roll over these maturities by using mainly secured debt.
The new funding profile weakened Credivalores' operating profile as
it pledged most of its eligible payroll portfolio given the rising
proportion of secured debt and diminishing financial flexibility.
Additionally, profitability has been under pressure as funding
costs rose following adjustments to Colombia's monetary policy rate
and the negative carry the company had to suffer to pay its July
maturity. Furthermore, the company's profitability was already
reeling from an increasing cost of risk for credit cards, the share
of which rose to slightly below 50% of Credivalores' total
portfolio from nearly 30% from years ago following the sale of some
of its payroll portfolio that was used as an alternative funding
source. S&P forecasts the company will focus its origination on its
payroll products rather than its credit cards.

Moreover, Credivalores faced some pressures to service the October
ECP maturity because the amount of unencumbered assets to be used
as collateral diminished after the July maturity payment. In
response, the company offered a debt exchange to its ECP
bondholders that extended the maturity by 12 months and offered a
premium value to creditors. The aggregate amount of new notes
totaled $15 million, which along with a $20 million secured
facility from one of the shareholders and the company's own cash,
enabled Credivalores to cover the $50 million maturity.

S&P doesn't view Credivalores exchange as distressed.

The company's exchange of its October 2022 ECP $50 million notes
didn't meet all conditions of a distressed exchange, according to
our ratings definitions. This is because S&P doesn't believe
there's clear evidence that creditors received less value than the
notes' original promised, according to the subscription notice.
Part of the premium Credivalores offered to its bondholders in its
new October 2023 notes included the rise in interest rate to 12.5%
from 8.5%.

Credivalores will face refinancing risks for the next 12 months,
but the repayment of its ECP notes could alleviate some of
immediate pressures. Moreover, in our opinion, Credivalores'
financial flexibility remains limited, and it will continue
grappling with significant challenges. In 2023, the company will
have two interest payments due in February and August totaling $40
million, $25 million in ECP notes in March, $15 million in new ECP
notes in October, and the payments on bank loans throughout the
year. However, Credivalores receives monthly loan collections of
about $25.5 million that could help strengthen its liquidity if the
loan origination volume is lower than this amount on a monthly
basis. However, the slower lending growth is not part of our
base-case scenario.

Following the harsh funding conditions for regional NBFIs in LATAM,
Credivalores has shifted back to its previous funding strategy that
relied primarily in secured funding sources until financing
conditions improve. In this sense, Credivalores secured four new
credit facilities, which could provide some degree of financial
flexibility and funding alternatives. However, the company needs to
originate new payroll loans to pledge them as collateral for some
of the borrowings. The first of these credit lines is a revolving
warehouse facility for up to $11 million. The second one is a
secured payroll facility for nearly $67 million. The third one is a
committed secured facility from one of the shareholders. The fourth
one is a $11 million secured facility for which Credivalores
pledges future recoveries of its non-performing loans. Currently,
Credivalores has a lower amount of unencumbered payroll loans that
it could use as collateral following the refinancing of the July
2022 bonds. S&P will closely monitor the amount of payroll
portfolio Credivalores could use as collateral and how this could
benefit the business continuity.

Increased funding costs and interest rates will continue hampering
Credivalores' credit profile. Efforts to refinance debt and higher
interest rates have caused Credivalores' funding costs to increase.
In this sense, the company posted a loss of $0.17 million in the
second quarter. Additionally, asset quality remains weak and could
lift costs of risk and reduce the amount of assets to be used as
collateral. To mitigate these risks and ensure the business
continuity, Credivalores announced that its shareholders intend to
pledge $20 million of fresh capital to the company, which
represents an increase of nearly 37% of its total adjusted capital.
S&P will closely monitor Credivalores' operating profile and
profitability metrics in order to determine the future payment
ability and assess the business continuity.

Outlook

The negative outlook on S&P's rating on Credivalores reflects its
expectations that its funding profile will remain pressured and
that it could deteriorate the company's liquidity within the next
six months considering the debt maturities the company has for that
timeframe.

Downside scenario

S&P could lower the ratings if liquidity shrinks to the point that
it jeopardizes business continuity. This could occur if the company
is unable to secure sufficient funding for its liquidity needs
and/or if the company is overly aggressive in its loan portfolio
growth or debt repurchases.

Upside scenario

S&P could take a positive rating action if the company is able to
secure new lines of funding that ensure its future debt repayments
while it regains its profitability and growth perspectives. The
compound effect of these factors would ensure the company's
business continuity and improve its financial metrics.




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D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C
===================================

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: ECLAC Spread Awareness of "Income Inequality"
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that the National Association of Young
Entrepreneurs (ANJE) received a copy of the report "Income
Inequality in the Dominican Republic 2012-2019" from the Ministry
of Economy, Planning, and Development and the Economic Commission
for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).  Pavel Isa Contreras,
the minister of economy, planning, and development, presided over
the meeting alongside Jaime Senior, the president of ANJE, Rolando
Ocampo, the director of ECLAC's statistics division, and Rosa
Canete Alonso, the director of the ministry of economy's analysis
of poverty, inequality, and democratic culture, according to
Dominican Today.

The study encourages openness and offers a more thorough
measurement based on household surveys and additional sources like
tax returns and national accounts, the report relays.  Isa
Contreras expressed that the organization has characterized itself
as a bold, innovative association that opens paths that are giving
its results in the Dominican business community with all the
concerns raised at a social and environmental level, which is very
positive for the nation, the report notes.  She was pleased to
speak with the Board of Directors, members of the Economy and
Energy commissions, as well as the ANJE's Sustainable Development
commission. For the MEPyD, he said, "I am happy to receive the ANJE
team," the report relays.

The country is facing the triple challenge of maintaining,
accelerating, and achieving economic prosperity with equity, so he
thought it was important to discuss the report that deals with a
new estimate of income inequality in the nation, the report adds.

                About Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean nation that shares the island
of Hispaniola with Haiti to the west. Capital city Santo Domingo
has Spanish landmarks like the Gothic Catedral Primada de America
dating back 5 centuries in its Zona Colonial district. Luis Rodolfo
Abinader Corona is the current president of the nation.

TCRLA reported in April 2019 that the Dominican Today related that
Juan Del Rosario of the UASD Economic Faculty cited a current
economic slowdown for the Dominican Republic and cautioned that if
the trend continues, growth would reach only 4% by 2023. Mr. Del
Rosario said that if that happens, "we'll face difficulties in
meeting international commitments."

An ongoing concern in the Dominican Republic is the inability of
participants in the electricity sector to establish financial
viability for the system.

Fitch Ratings, in December 2021, revised the Outlook on Dominican
Republic's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR)
to Stable from Negative and affirmed the IDRs at 'BB-'.  The
revision of the Outlook to Stable reflects the narrowing of
Dominican Republic's government deficit and financing needs since
Fitch's last review resulting in the stabilization of the
government debt/GDP ratio, as well as the investment-driven
economic momentum, reflected in the faster-than-expected economic
recovery in 2021 that Fitch expects to carry into above-potential
GDP growth during 2022 and 2023.

Standard & Poor's, also in December 2021, revised its outlook on
the Dominican Republic to stable from negative.  S&P also affirmed
its 'BB-' long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings and its 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings.  The
stable outlook reflects S&P's expectation of continued favorable
GDP growth and policy continuity over the next 12 to 18 months that
will likely stabilize the government's debt burden, despite lack of
progress with broader tax reforms, S&P said.  A rapid economic
recovery from the downturn because of the pandemic should mitigate
external and fiscal risks.

Moody's affirmed the Dominican Republic's long-term issuer and
senior unsecured ratings at Ba3 and maintained the stable outlook
in March 2021.


[*] DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Has Excellent Loan Ratings With IDB
-----------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that the Inter-American Development Bank
(IDB), which is the nation's main source of multilateral financing,
is at ease thanks to the Dominican Republic's sound debt management
and high and steady economic growth.  IDB representatives Katharina
Falkner Olmedo and Gilles Damais took part in the special interview
of El Caribe and CDN and discussed the nation's record of economic
growth as well as the outlook for the upcoming year to highlight
the positive aspects of the state, according to Dominican Today.

Falkner Olmedo responded to a question about the country's level of
debt, that the sustainability of the debt is not a nominal issue
but rather a relative numerical one and that they are comforted by
the fact that the country has grown by 12% last year, 5.5% thus far
this year, and is expected to grow by a factor of two more than the
region, the report notes.  The IDB would not lend to the country if
the government had not been able to maintain a moderate growth rate
in its public debt, which continues to be at completely acceptable
levels, according to the chief of operations, the report relays.

Furthermore, Damais emphasized that the international rating
agencies did not downgrade the nation's classification, indicating
that they believe the macroeconomic management, including debt
management, is excellent, the report discloses.  Maintaining a
manageable level of debt is crucial, in our opinion, and choosing
the projects to invest in based on debt is crucial, the report
says.  He said, "There is no reason not to continue lending money
if there are profitable projects and if the level of indebtedness
is reasonable because what is invested now will generate benefits
for the population that will allow you to repay the debt," the
report adds.

                About Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean nation that shares the island
of Hispaniola with Haiti to the west. Capital city Santo Domingo
has Spanish landmarks like the Gothic Catedral Primada de America
dating back 5 centuries in its Zona Colonial district. Luis Rodolfo
Abinader Corona is the current president of the nation.

TCRLA reported in April 2019 that the Dominican Today related that
Juan Del Rosario of the UASD Economic Faculty cited a current
economic slowdown for the Dominican Republic and cautioned that if
the trend continues, growth would reach only 4% by 2023. Mr. Del
Rosario said that if that happens, "we'll face difficulties in
meeting international commitments."

An ongoing concern in the Dominican Republic is the inability of
participants in the electricity sector to establish financial
viability for the system.

Fitch Ratings, in December 2021, revised the Outlook on Dominican
Republic's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR)
to Stable from Negative and affirmed the IDRs at 'BB-'.  The
revision of the Outlook to Stable reflects the narrowing of
Dominican Republic's government deficit and financing needs since
Fitch's last review resulting in the stabilization of the
government debt/GDP ratio, as well as the investment-driven
economic momentum, reflected in the faster-than-expected economic
recovery in 2021 that Fitch expects to carry into above-potential
GDP growth during 2022 and 2023.

Standard & Poor's, also in December 2021, revised its outlook on
the Dominican Republic to stable from negative.  S&P also affirmed
its 'BB-' long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings and its 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings.  The
stable outlook reflects S&P's expectation of continued favorable
GDP growth and policy continuity over the next 12 to 18 months that
will likely stabilize the government's debt burden, despite lack of
progress with broader tax reforms, S&P said.  A rapid economic
recovery from the downturn because of the pandemic should mitigate
external and fiscal risks.

Moody's affirmed the Dominican Republic's long-term issuer and
senior unsecured ratings at Ba3 and maintained the stable outlook
in March 2021.




===============
H O N D U R A S
===============

INVESTMENT ENERGY: S&P Affirms 'BB-' ICR, Outlook Stable
--------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings, on Oct. 31, 2022, affirmed its 'BB-' issuer
credit rating on Investment Energy Resources Ltd. (IERL) with a
stable outlook. S&P also affirmed the 'BB-' issue-level rating.

The stable outlook reflects S&P's view that the company will
maintain its gross debt to EBITDA at 4.5x-5.0x and funds from
operations (FFO) to gross debt between 12%-15% in 2023, even with
the PPA renegotiation.

S&P expects the preliminary agreement between IERL and Empresa
Nacional de Energia Electrica (ENEE; not rated), Honduras'
state-owned electrical utility, to renegotiate IERL's power
purchase agreements (PPAs) in Honduras to be neutral to the
company's creditworthiness. Despite a price cut that will lead to a
$12 million reduction in revenues, we expect IERL to amortize part
of its outstanding debt early with proceeds it will receive from
ENEE related to late payments.

On Oct. 3rd, 2022, IERL announced it had reached a preliminary
agreement with ENEE to renegotiate its PPAs in Honduras. The terms
of the negotiation include a cut in IERL's PPAs prices to $110 per
megawatt hour (/MWh) from roughly $125.7/MWh for the Choluteca and
Pacífico solar plants, and to $130/MWh from $132.5/MWh for the
wind park Cerro de Hula. The new terms also end their capacity
revenues and renewable incentives. The combination of these new
terms will result in a reduction of approximately $12 million in
revenues and $7 million in EBITDA in 2023, which represents about
3.5% of the company's consolidated revenues. In exchange, IERL will
get a five-year extension of its PPAs and receive about $84 million
in overdue payments from ENEE. The receipt of the latter is a
condition for the conclusion of the negotiations, which S&P expects
to happen before the end of the year.

According to IERL's management, it will use the majority of the
proceeds from ENEE's late payments to prepay part of its existing
$961 million debt, as of June 2022. As a result, even assuming the
3.5% decline in revenues, S&P forecasts the company's gross debt to
EBITDA to continue to be 4.5x-5.0x in the next three years, and FFO
to gross debt in the 12%-15% range, aligned with its assessment of
its financial risk profile.

S&P will monitor if the payment delays from ENEE persist following
the conclusion of the PPA renegotiation, because it could lead to
higher working capital needs.

S&P expects IERL's EBITDA margins to drop to 55%-56%, from about
60% in 2022, due to the abovementioned PPA renegotiation in
Honduras and the effect of rising inflation in the U.S., Central
America, and in the Caribbean countries where IERL operates. The
positive effect of local currency depreciation on local costs, such
as wages, doesn't fully compensate for the effect of local currency
inflation on operating and maintenance expenses because most of the
energy contracts are only partly adjusted to the U.S. CPI.

ESG credit indicators: E-1, S-3, G-3




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J A M A I C A
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JAMAICA: PIAJ Seeks to Adopt Auto Enrolment to Address Crisis
-------------------------------------------------------------
RJR News reports that early 60 years after Jamaica's Independence,
only 18 per cent of the population, including public sector
workers, can count on a pension to provide some income stability in
retirement.  Sanya Goffe, president of the Pensions Industry
Association of Jamaica (PIAJ), explains that after 40 years of work
the most vulnerable may become dependent on social protection
programmes or the kindness of friends and family, according to RJR
News.

"Jamaica's shifting demographic structure, low pension coverage,
and increasing old-age dependency ratio put a growing part of the
population at risk of old- age poverty and exposes the Government
to a future fiscal crisis," asserts Goffe, the report notes.

The PIAJ believes that one of the tools for addressing this problem
is to automatically enrol all employed persons, not currently
participating in a pension plan, into any one of the 13 approved
retirement schemes, the report relays.  Employers would not have to
contribute and once enrolled, employees would have the option to
withdraw; but the experience in other countries has shown that most
of those who are auto-enrolled actually remain in the scheme, the
report notes.

The result is often higher levels of pension savings and
participation often in the range of 50 per cent to 70 per cent, the
report relays.  Given that private sector pension coverage in
Jamaica is currently between nine and 11 per cent, auto enrolment
could be a major game changer for Jamaica, the report discloses.

"Eighteen years after the implementation of a regulatory framework
for private sector pension plans in Jamaica, the private market
alone has not been able to solve the dire problem of low coverage,"
shares Goffe. With low pension coverage and an ageing population,
the PIAJ believes now is the time for the Government to act, the
report says.

The PIAJ embarked on an intense public engagement programme to
present its auto-enrolment proposal during the course of this year
and met with a wide cross section of stakeholder groups including
the Business Process Industry Association, the Jamaica
Confederation of Trade Unions, Jamaica Employers' Federation,
National Financial Inclusion Secretariat, Private Sector
Organisation of Jamaica, the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce, Jamaica
Promotions (Jampro), approved retirement scheme providers, the
Financial Deepening Implementation Committee and the American
Chamber of Commerce, the report relays.  Following the stakeholder
engagements, the Association extended invitations to the Ministry
of Finance, Ministry of Labour, Bank of Jamaica, Financial Services
Commission, Tax Administration Jamaica, and the leader of the
Opposition and key members of his team, the report says.

"We are almost at the end of our engagement process, having met
with all the identified stakeholders except for the Ministry of
Finance.  There has been positive support for the introduction of
an auto-enrolment program and we received useful feedback on the
proposal and the strategic approach to implementation from the
meetings," shares Goffe, the report notes.  The next step is to
meet with the Ministry of Finance to explore the proposal further,
the report relays.

The concept paper put forward by the PIAJ aims at giving all
working Jamaicans easier access to pension coverage through auto
enrolment and a reliable source of income after retirement, the
report discloses.

Without extra income from work or private pensions, many senior
citizens will face the harsh reality of choosing between paying
their rent and buying food. Others will be forced to continue
working, just to make ends meet or rely on their children for
support, the report says.

The recently published Mercer 2022 Global Pensions Index reported
that many individuals will not save for the future without an
element of compulsion or auto enrollment, the report notes.

"The PIAJ is excited about the impact this proposal could have on
improving retirement security for more Jamaicans and stands ready
to collaborate with the Government to take this initiative
forward," states Goffe, the report adds.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America in March
2022, Fitch Ratings has affirmed Jamaica's Long-Term Foreign
Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at 'B+'. The Rating Outlook is
Stable.




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LATAM: Mexico and Brazil Stand Out in a Hard-Hit Region
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Rocco Caldero at Rio Times Online reports that an overcrowded
population in crowded megacities, poor transportation, crumbling
infrastructure, and inadequate medical care meant that Latin
America had a difficult Covid-19 pandemic.

And recovery has also been complicated, according to Rio Times
Online.

Investors never had much faith in the region's politicians, but
that faith has eroded further. The International Monetary Fund
(IMF) forecasts regional growth of 3.5% this year, slowing to 1.7%
in 2023, the report notes.

According to IMF estimates, Latin America's share of global GDP
will fall to 7.3% this year from 8.5% a decade ago and is likely to
decline further, the report points out.

Mexico and Brazil are exceptions. Both are in relatively good
shape. That has been reflected in asset prices, the report
discloses.

The Mexican peso is trading steadily these days: It has traded
between 19.75 and 20.5 to the dollar for over two months. It has
been returning to 20 to the dollar since late 2020, the report
recalls.

The country was flirting with a recession before Covid-19 arrived
but is now posting solid growth with low unemployment near the
post-global financial crisis, the report relates.

The biggest threat to Mexico is that it imports a recession from
its northern neighbor, the United States, the report says.

Brazil's central bank reacted early and aggressively to inflation.
It is now one of the first to halt rate hikes. Unemployment has
fallen to the lowest level since late 2015, the report notes.

Economists raised their forecasts for growth this year to 2.7%, up
from 0.5% projected in April, the report relays.

Polls suggest that former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva
remains the favorite to win Brazil's runoff election on October 30,
but the odds have narrowed, the report relates.

Assets would likely react favorably to a victory by his rival,
incumbent President Bolsonaro. However, ESG (environmental, social,
and corporate governance) investors may find Brazil more favorable
under a Lula government, the report discloses.

When Fitch downgraded Argentina to CCC- on Wednesday, October 26,
it cited "deep macroeconomic imbalances and a highly constrained
external liquidity position," the report relates.

Argentina is an extreme example, but other countries in the region
are also suffering, the report notes.

Colombia's currency has plunged about 5% in the past month, the
worst performance among emerging markets, as investors flee the
country over concerns about leftist President Gustavo Petro's
agenda, the report relays.

The central bank is expected to raise its policy rate again by 100
basis points and signal that there is more to come, the report
discloses.

According to IMF estimates, Colombia's current account deficit will
be 5.1% this year, and Chile's current account deficit will end in
2022 at 6.7% of GDP, the report relates.

El Salvador's will be 8.9%. However, Brazil's will be 1.45%, and
Mexico's will be 1.2%, the report notes.



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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.

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