Ecuador’s president, Alfredo Palacio, has completed his cabinet reshuffle, changing a third of his ministers. The cabinet will have five new faces following the departures of the ministers of economy, interior, foreign trade, public works and secretary general of administration. Armando Rodas becomes the new economy minister to replace Diejo Borja and Jorge Illingworth steps back to become foreign trade minister in place of Joaquín Zevallos who took over at the end of May. Lawyer Rafael Parreño is appointed secretary general of administration to replace José Modesto Apolo. The replacements for interior minister Felipe Vega and head of public works, Derlis Palacios have yet to be announced.
Category: Regions
Posted inDaily Brief
Spain’s Grupo Calvo Cuts El Salvador Tuna Operation in Half
Spanish tuna producer said it will fire 600 workers in El Salvador after the country lost preferential access to the European market, forcing it to halve the number of shifts operating at its facilities. The tuna will be subject to a 20.5 percent tariff because El Salvador has refused to comply with all World Trade Organization rules. The government is trying to negotiate with the European Union but the Spanish company does not believe it will be successful.
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Venezuela to Build Gas Pipeline to Colombia
Venezuela will begin building a $280 million natural gas pipeline to Colombia next month. The 230-kilometer pipeline will link Punta Ballenas to Maracaibo in Venezuela. The two countries are also considering extending the pipeline to Panama, which would open Central America to Venezuelan gas.
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexican Economy Grew 1.8 Percent in April, Preliminary Figures Show
Preliminary figures show the Mexican economy expanded 1.8 percent in April compared with a year earlier. Growth was weak because Holy Week, when many factories close down, fell in April this year, compared with March in 2005.
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexico Lifts Aerocalifornia’s Flying Ban
Mexican authorities lifted a flying ban on Aerocalifornia, a small private airline, after the company took measures to improve safety procedures. Investigations had shown Aerocalifornia had not carried out mandatory maintenance nor kept a record on the origin and installation date of some spare parts. Five planes have now been cleared to resume service after undergoing an extensive overhaul.
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Mexico’s Central Bank Holds Rates Steady
Mexico’s central bank held its benchmark interest rate steady at 7 percent Friday, just over a week before the presidential elections. The monetary authority indicated it saw no room for a cut in the foreseeable future as it looks to calm market jitters before the tight contest between Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Felipe Calderon on July 2. Concerns over rising U.S. interest rates as well as domestic inflation are preventing the bank from cutting domestic borrowing costs.
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Televisa Submits $12 Bln Bid For Univision
Mexico’s Grupo Televisa SA, has bid around $12 billion for Univision Communications Inc., the largest Spanish language broadcaster in the United States. The offer of $35.50 a share is below the $40 a share Univision is said to be looking for. Televisa delayed its bid as Venezuelan group Venevision Investments pulled out forcing other partners, including Bain Capital LLC and Cascade Investment LLC, to pledge more cash.
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IFC Invests In Interbolsa
As part of its program to help broaden and deepen Colombia’s domestic securities market, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, will provide a partial credit guarantee of up to $26.9 million to local brokerage firm Interbolsa on its inaugural peso-denominated bond issue of $89.6 million. The funds raised by the issue are to be used to reduce Interbolsa’s reliance on commercial bank funding. The IFC has also agreed to buy an equity stake in the company of up 8%, for around $10 million.
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Univision Rejects Bid
US Spanish-language broadcaster Univision has rejected a bid made for around $11 billion by a group of US investors, saying the offer is too low. An investor group led by Mexican broadcaster Televisa is reportedly still preparing to make an offer, despite several members of the group pulling out.
Posted inDaily Brief
Five Groups Bid to Operate Colombian Airport
Five consortia submitted bids to operate Colombia’s Eldorado airport for the next 20 years. The project envisions $650 million in investments to modernize facilities. The bidders include Siemens Project Ventures and Dorsch Consult Ventures as well as Corporacion America CASA, which manages airports in Argentina. The winner will be announced by September.