Mexico’s Federal Electoral Court has declared Felipe Calderón of the ruling PAN party the next president of Mexico. He will assume the presidency from outgoing president, Vicente Fox, on December 1 for a term of six years. The seven electoral judges ruled unanimously in favor of Calderón as the victor of the country’s July 2 elections, rejecting challenges presented by losing candidate Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO). Despite the court ruling, AMLO’s supporters – who have disrupted the country and Congress in recent weeks – vowed to carry on protesting the outcome. AMLO himself has implied he may set up a parallel government. The Court’s decision cannot be appealed.
Category: Regions
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexico Swaps $500 Million Dollar-Denominated Debt
Mexico swapped $500 million of dollar-denominated bonds, Friday, in exchange for local-currency debt. The debt swap is part of a larger program which aims to continue cutting Mexico’s external debt in favor of domestic debt. Last November, Mexico sold $65 million of warrants to enable investors to swap $2.5 billion dollar-denominated securities for peso debt this year. Then in March this year, the sovereign sold warrants to swap euro-denominated bonds worth $722 million (€600 million) into local-currency bonds due in 2013 and 2023. Mexico is hoping to bring down its foreign debt-to-GDP ratio to around 6% by the end of this year from around 12% in 2000.
Posted inDaily Brief
Colombia Sells $1 Billion Global Bond
Colombia was also tapping international markets yesterday, Wednesday, when it sold $1 billion of a new global bond, due in 2037 to fund the buyback of up to $700 million of foreign-currency bonds. The bonds were sold at a yield of 7.453% – 250 basis points above comparable US treasuries – and carry a coupon of 7.375%. The sovereign offered to buy back its 2020, 2027 and 2033 issues, which together account for $700 million. The buyback is part of the government’s strategy of altering the profile of Colombia’s debt. The sale is being managed by Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch.
Posted inDaily Brief
Zavala Joins Backus And Johnston
Ernesto Zavala, formerly Peru’s economy minister under Alejandro Toledo, has joined brewer Backus and Johnston, as corporate affairs director. Robert Priday, managing director of the Peruvian subsidiary of Anglo-South African SABMiller, welcomed Zavala as one of Peru’s brightest young men.
Posted inMagazine
If You Build It
Central America is copying and improving on the Mexican model of large-scale, planned tourist centers by FONATUR.
Posted inMagazine
More Than Hot Air
LNG is shaping up to be an important technology for supplying natural gas to North America, and Mexico is positioned to play a pivotal role.
Posted inMagazine
Colombian Black Gold
After years as the awkward stepchild for oil companies operating in South America, Colombia is looking awfully attractive.
Posted inDaily Brief
GCC Closes $250 Million Syndicated Credit
Mexican cement-producer Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) has closed a $250 million syndicated credit with a group of eight banks that includes BBVA, HSBC Mexico, Citibank and Bank of Nova Scotia. The credit expires in seven years with interest at LIBOR plus a spread reflecting the company’s competitive situation. A first drawdown of $90 million has already been made, according to GCC’s press release. BBVA Securities arranged the transaction. GCC is to use the money to refinance bridging loans taken out for its May acquisition of Midco in the US, to finance part of the investment in a new cement plant in Colorado and to refinance domestic bonds due in December this year.
Posted inDaily Brief
GISSA To Merge Homeware Units
Mexican Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GISSA) has announced it will merge three of its units, effective September 1. The three firms – Cinsa, Porcelanizados Enasa and Comesco – are all part of the homeware division of the Coahuila-based industrial group. The merger, which will see Cinsa absorbing Enasa and Comesco – is being carried out to simplify administrative operations of the companies, according to GISSA.
Posted inDaily Brief
OLA To Millicom
Luxembourg-based Millicom has won control of Colombia Móvil, known as OLA, the country’s third-largest mobile phone company, after revising its bid to $478.5 million, the minimum price accepted by OLA’s owners – Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Bogotá (ETB) and Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM) – Colombia’s two largest telcos. Millicom will now control 50% plus one share of OLA’s capital. Caribbean-based Digicel Group, the only other qualified contender in the race, failed to present a bid, leaving Millicom to negotiate a price directly with ETB and EPM.