Ecuadorian Interior Minister Mauricio Gándara has been replaced by Oswaldo Molestina, formerly Minister of Foreign Trade, following growing tension between Gándara and Congress which threatened to block political and constitutional reform.
Category: Regions
Posted inDaily Brief
Ecuador to Review Oil Contracts
Ecuador is to review all oil contracts in a bid to raise the state’s share of oil revenue to 50% from 20%. Currently companies are able to take 80% of the revenues. Ecuador is the fifth largest crude oil producer in Latin America. Among those companies that would be affected are Occidental of the US and Spain’s Repsol-YPF.
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexico Inflation Falls
Mexico’s central bank says inflation last month was 0.12%, slightly below analysts’ forecasts of 0.18%. Inflation on an annualized basis is now running at 3.95%. This is the first time since 2003 that inflation has been within government targets of between 2% and 4%.
Posted inDaily Brief
Mexican Stocks Jump
Mexican stocks jumped 1.43 percent to a record high close of 15,246 Wednesday, helped by telecom companies, retailer Walmex and a rally in home builder Sare ahead of a share offer. Investors have snatched up Mexican stocks this week amid expectations that US interest rates may rise slower than expected following the disaster wrought by Hurricane Katrina.
Posted inDaily Brief
Walmex Eyes Small Cities
Wal-Mart de Mexico, Latin America’s largest retailer, is considering 371 cities as locations for new stores, said Chief Executive Eduardo Solorzano. The company plans to open 90 stores by yearend, including 12 Wal-Mart Supercenters, as it shifts its growth strategy from large urban centers to small cities in Mexico.
Posted inDaily Brief
World Bank Approves Mexico Loan
The World Bank approved a $200 million fixed-spread loan to finance sustainable development programs in Mexico. The loan, which is the second in a series of three to be extended to the country within five years, has a repayment period of 14 and a half years and includes a grace term of 4 years.
Posted inDaily Brief
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.
Posted inDaily Brief
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.
Posted inDaily Brief
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.
Posted inDaily Brief
Petrobras to Restart Wells
State-owned oil company Petroleo Brasileiro said it will reopen five of its six oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico within a week. Petrobras normally pumps 6,500 barrels of oil a day from fields off the US states of Texas and Louisiana.