LatAm Sovereign Debt Supply Seen Drying Up, S&P Says

Sovereigns in LatAm and the Caribbean should issue a slightly smaller amount of debt in 2008 compared to 2007, according to S&P. The agency forecasts gross long-term debt from the 25 sovereigns will be $290bn – including both multilaterals and capital markets – down from $322bn last year. The trend is owed to better overall access to the capital markets that has given borrowers access to longer tenors and reduced the frequency of refinancing. Governments are also less in need of funds because of improving credit ratings and debt management. Brazil should again be the biggest issuer this year, followed by Mexico, Colombia, and Venezuela, says S&P.