It is very unlikely that the negotiations will wrap up before the September nineteenth deadline; so what happens if the country defaults on the Superbond? While there is a small window after the deadline to engage bondholders, Ysaguirre says the consequences would include further downgrading of the sovereign credit rating and Belize might be branded […]
Butane prices went up two weeks ago and this was followed by a hike in the price of chicken which went up by as much as twelve cents per pound this week. If that hurt your pocket, hurry to the gas pump because the price of fuel will take a sharp increase on Sunday. Premium […]
Still on the Superbond, the Prime Minister said on Wednesday that he was hoping that negotiations on the restructuring of the five hundred and forty-four million dollar Superbond would be successful to prevent a default. He also said that there was no source of financing to meet the twenty-three million U.S. dollar coupon that was […]
The real business of the House had to do with the municipal bond. Belize City Mayor Darrell Bradley announced a month ago that he is inviting investment in the twenty million dollar municipal bond. The bond, issued by local government, would be used to create an infrastructure fund for the continued repairs of streets in […]
The Prime Minister addressed the nation via a press conference today looking for support in the re-structuring of the five hundred and forty-four million US dollar super bond. On Monday government missed a coupon payment of twenty three million dollars which caused a quick downgrade by Standard and Poor’s. While the Prime Minister says there […]
Still on the Superbond, while the PM says he is not contemplating going to the I.M.F., he says that the government is unable to pay in the immediate or near term and that, “if it is make or break, then break it will be.” The government will go to the House this Thursday for the […]
Chicken prices are up by ten cents per pound for whole chicken and twelve cents for parts. This news may not settle well with consumers, but the short of it is that countries across the world are bracing for the hike in prices of one of the most affordable and favorite proteins. Today, the Belize […]
Two dollars and thirty eight cents would have bought you a pound of chicken on Monday, but not today; the price for the favorite protein on dinner tables is now two dollars and forty-eight cents per pound. It is anticipated that the increase in chicken prices will be across the board; for Quality Poultry Products, […]
Locally, the private sector says it is in favor of the restructuring of the Superbond and that the government must pay its debts. The opposition has asked the prime minister the nation and says it wasn’t consulted when the government decided not to pay the twenty-three million US dollar coupon. But internationally, the Superbond continues […]
We start tonight with financial news on the accumulated five hundred and forty four U.S. million dollar Superbond which has become the most pressing issue before the government. Following an announcement on August eight offering three repayment scenarios, the government missed the coupon payment due today for some twenty-three million U.S. dollars. A one month […]
The government missed the Superbond payment today. That bad news is accompanied by even more depressing news. The Statistical Institute of Belize’s recent survey regarding employment levels in the country shows that unemployment is at its highest in over a decade and that unemployment is highest among women. The survey involved close to ten thousand […]
Last week, the government published three restructuring scenarios for the 2029 Superbond. Those scenarios were followed up by an announcement that the government would not be able to pay the August twentieth coupon. An assessment of the situation released by Nomura Securities noted that the Prime Minister’s budget presentation indicated that the government had provisioned […]
The Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry, following a meeting with Ambassador of Economic Affairs Mark Espat, has issued a release in support of renegotiating the Superbond. While the default on the coupon and the Standard and Poor’s downgrade were being announced, Espat, in his capacity as government’s lead negotiator, met with the private sector […]
Almost a month ago the Ministry of Trade, Investment Promotion, Private Sector Development and Consumer Protection, announced a huge decrease in butane prices. The cost per hundred pound cylinder went down by thirty dollars, but it’s heading back up. As of today, the prices from Mexican Importers went up four dollars while the price from […]
There will be a special sitting of the House of Representatives on Thursday, August twenty-third. The press release sent from the Capital did not state the reason for the special sitting but the day would no doubt be focused on the Superbond. The next coupon payment of forty-six million dollars is due on Monday, and […]
The Superbond negotiating team dropped a financial super bomb on bondholders. In a release that was posted on the Central Bank of Belize’s website this afternoon, G.O.B. said that it is unable to meet the August twentieth coupon payment of the Superbond. The payment is for forty-six million Belize dollars, due next week Monday or […]
The announcement is stunning because in the presentation of the budget for the 2012/2013 budget in July, the Prime Minister specifically and categorically stated that “For the fiscal year 2012/2013, we have budgeted overall debt service payments at Belize two hundred point seven million dollars, of which approximately one hundred and seventy-four point five million […]
The feedback on the bond restructuring continues to be far from welcoming. According to a recent report by Carl Ross for Oppenheimer issued on August tenth, 2012, “The the proposed terms were significantly worse than most people expected, with a major lengthening of maturities and a drastic cut in coupon levels.” Ross estimate that the […]
There is breaking news regarding the bond. The Coordinating Committee of Bondholders formed to address matters relating to the potential restructuring of super bond due in 2029 has expressed disappointment and concern over the Government of Belize’s recently published indicative restructuring scenarios. A press release by the Coordinating Committee issued late this evening says while they were initially […]
A few bond restructuring options have been posted on the Central Bank of Belize’s website. And according to a research analyst, there are default concerns. The yield on the bond in its current form, jumped three point five percentage points to twenty-three point four percent after the announcement of the three options, which suggest that […]
The next bond payment for Belize is due on August twentieth. The government had stated that it budgeted for the payment, but it hasn’t announced whether or not it would make the payment. As you are aware the bond team is currently negotiating with bondholders for new terms that would be sustainable. Tonight we take […]
The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development has released what it calls the Indicative Restructuring Scenarios on the five hundred and fifty-seven million U.S. dollar super bond. The document is available on the Central Bank’s website at www.centralbank.org.bz. A negotiating team led by Mark Espat has been meeting with multilateral partners to fine-tune macro economic […]
A huge drop of thirty dollar in butane prices took effect on July twentieth; that was good news for cooks, but tonight there’s bad news at the pumps for drivers. And the next time you head to the gas station you will feel the punch in your pockets. At midnight on Tuesday, an increase in […]
From gold to Superbond; a coupon payment of forty-six million dollars is due on the twentieth of August and the eyes of credit agencies are on Belize to see if it will be met. Bloomberg BusinessWeek today described Belize’s notes as the worst performers in emerging markets this month since the dollar bonds fell by […]
The City Council is inviting the business community to invest in a twenty million dollar bond. According to the Mayor Darrell Bradley, City Hall doesn’t have the money to spend on infrastructure so he is floating the bond to finance work on fifteen streets in the Old Capital. This morning the Mayor gave details about […]
