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Colombia Buys Back Bonds

Colombia is planning to repurchase $700 million of euro and dollar-denominated bonds this month as the government seeks to protect itself from future swings of the peso against foreign currencies. The dollar bonds will have maturities between 2006 and 2033 and the euro-denominated bonds are set to mature in 2008 and 2011. Colombia’s government is seeking to cut the portion of its foreign debt as a percentage of overall debt to 40 percent this year from 42 percent in February.

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Fox Looks to Cut Debt

Mexican President Vicente Fox’s proposed spending plan for 2006 seeks to use revenue from record high oil prices to reduce the nation’s international debt to 6.8 percent of GDP, its lowest level in more than three decades. Foreign-currency debt represented 9.8 percent of GDP in June. Fox is proposing total government spending next year of $176 billion, about the same in real terms as what was approved by congress for this year.

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Pemex Invests in Chiapas

Mexican state-run oil giant Petroleos Mexicanos will invest $105 million in the rebellious southern state of Chiapas, with most of the money going to improve security at the company´s installations. Pemex will build a new fuel storage and distribution facility in Tapachula and will spend an addition $16 million to finance road projects in the area.

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Crude Oil Falls

Brent crude oil for October settlement fell $1.21 to $64.85 a barrel on London’s International Petroleum Exchange Monday after producers resumed output in the Gulf of Mexico and the International Energy Agency pledged to release emergency reserves. BP’s Holstein platform in the Gulf has started production, while Royal Dutch Shell and Marathon Oil resumed processing at two refineries in Louisiana over the weekend.

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