Colombian Cemento Argos is to buy rival Cementos Andino and concrete producer Concrecem in a deal worth $192 million. Argos is Latin America’s fifth-largest cement producer and recently purchased two cement companies in the US in the largest investment by a Colombian firm in the US.
Category: Regions
Posted inDaily Brief
$47 Million Debt Offer From Mexican Constructor Geo
Mexico’s largest housing construction company, Corporación Geo, has announced that it will offer 500 million pesos ($46.6 million) of four-year debt today in the first tranche of a 1 billion pesos issuance. Geo will issue 5 million exchange certificates worth 100 pesos each. The offering has been rated mxA by Standard & Poor’s. It will be managed by Banorte and Multivalores.
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexican Slim To Increase Investment in Argentina
Mexican businessman Carlos Slim has said he will increase investment in his telecoms operations in Argentina, spending $400 million next year on improving telephone networks in the country. Slim has subsidiaries in Argentina of his two telecoms companies: Telmex and América Móvil.
Posted inDaily Brief
Peru To Offer New Fixed-Line License
Peru has decided to offer another fixed-line telecoms license to open up the market to competition. Currently there is only one operator – an affiliate of Spanish company Telefónica, which has dominated the market since 1994. The license will be up for public auction, with the sale organized by state investment agency ProInversión.
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexican Controladora Mabe To Issue 144A Securities
Mexican white goods producer Controladora Mabe has announced it will issue this week $200 million 10-year priority secured debt in the market for Rule 144A securities. The notes will be placed by Citigroup and ABN Amro. The funds raised will be used to repay existing debt. Standard & Poor’s and Fitch have assigned a BBB- rating to the notes.
Posted inDaily Brief
Peru Consumer Prices Up 0.14%
Peru’s consumer prices were up by 0.14% in October after two consecutive months of decline. In September and August it fell by 0.09% and 0.18% respectively. Cumulative inflation is at 1%, below government targets.
Posted inDaily Brief
Bolivia President Sets New Election Date
Interim President of Bolivia, Eduardo Rodriguez, has used his presidential decree to break the deadlock in Congress and set a new election date of 18 December. Last week the National Electoral Court cancelled the original polling date of 4 December after Congress failed to agree on redrawing legislative districts. Rodriguez has redistributed congressional seats based on the most recent 2001 census, giving additional seats to the eastern lowland regions where the population has grown fastest.
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexico Lowers GDP Growth Estimate
The Bank of Mexico has reduced its forecast for economic growth in 2005 by a quarter of a percentage point, citing the impact of two hurricanes that hit Mexico in the past few months. GDP growth of between 2.75% and 3.25% is now expected.
Posted inDaily Brief
Ecuador FDI Up 58%
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Ecuador rose to $452.42 million in the second quarter of the year, a rise of 58% year on year. The top investors were Canada, which accounted for 30.5% of the total, followed by the US with 19.4%, Spain (7.8%), Brazil (6.9 %), Italy (4.9%), and the balance from other countries.
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexican Cablemas To Issue $165 Million Bonds
Mexico’s second-largest cable company Cablemás SA is due to issue $165 million of 10-years bonds under Rule 144A today. The bonds, rated B1 by Moody’s and BB- by Standard & Poor’s, are redeemable after five years. The issue is being arranged by Credit Suisse First Boston.