Ones to Watch, 11 May 2020
Americas: Controversy expected as Guyana’s 2 March general elections vote recount begins Sectors: all; oil & gas Key Risks: political stability; policy continuity; civil unrest In Guyana, controversy over the 2 March general elections is set to increase as the long-delayed full recount of votes began on 6 May. Meant to last around 25 days, according to estimates […]
Ones to Watch, 4 May 2020
Americas: Argentina unlikely to modify debt restructuring offer as default looms Sectors: all Key Risks: sovereign default In Argentina, the government appears ready to extend the 8 May deadline it has imposed on holders of US$66.2bln of foreign debt to accept a restructuring proposal which has been already rejected by the main creditor groups. The extension would […]
Ones to Watch, 27 April 2020
Americas: Brazil’s Bolsonaro under growing pressure as Moro quits finance minister post Sectors: all Key Risks: political instability; policy continuity In Brazil, Sergio Moro resigned on 24 April as justice minister after a showdown with President Jair Bolsonaro, who he accused of interfering in police investigations and of firing the head of the federal police for personal […]
Ones to Watch, 20 April 2020
Americas: Mexico’s Pemex faces bond sell-off, higher borrowing costs amid credit rating cuts Sectors: oil & gas Key Risks: non-payment; credit rating downgrade In Mexico, embattled state-owned oil firm Pemex is expected to face a bond sell-off and increased borrowing costs following Moody’s Investors Service’s decision to cut its credit rating two notches to Ba2 with a negative […]
Ones to Watch, 14 April 2020
Americas: Guyana’s electoral authorities to decide on general elections full recount Sectors: all; oil & gas Key Risks: political stability; policy continuity; civil unrest In Guyana, the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) is meant to decide on the modalities under which it will conduct a full recount of the 2 March general elections. The recount was […]
Ones to Watch, 6 April 2020
Americas: Argentina delays local-law debt repayments amid heightened Sectors: all Key Risks: sovereign default; policy continuity In Argentina, the government issued a decree unilaterally postponing the payment of up to US$10bln in dollar-denominated debt issued under local law until 31 December or a prior date to be determined by the Economy Ministry. The move, which […]
Ones to Watch, 30 March 2020

Americas: Brazil’s Petrobras to cut output, investments amid COVID-19 Sectors: oil and gas Key Risks: economic risks; frustration of process In Brazil, state-owned Petrobras announced plans to cut crude oil production, investment spending and refined-product output to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 and of plummeting oil prices. On 26 March the firm stated that it […]
Ones to Watch, 23 March 2020
Americas: COVID-19, low oil prices hit Ecuador, Fitch cuts sovereign credit rating to ‘CCC’ Sectors: all; mining Key Risks: business and economic risks; sovereign default In Ecuador, plummeting oil prices and the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak will continue to heighten sovereign default and business disruption risks. On 20 March authorities announced that Canada’s Lundin Gold’s Fruta del Norte […]
Ones to Watch, 16 March 2020

Americas: Border closures, travel restrictions, deportations amid COVID-19 in Latin America Sectors: all Key Risks: business and economic risks; travel disruption; FoP Latin American countries will continue to heighten measures to try to control the spread of COVID-19. Border closures, deportations of tourists refusing to quarantine, banning large public events, suspension of flights, banning foreigners and […]
Ones to Watch, 9 March 2020
Americas: Argentine farmers launch commercial strike to protest export tax hike Sectors: agriculture; all Key Risks: business risks; strikes; transport disruption; protests In Argentina, farmers launched a four-day commercial strike on 9 March which could also lead to disruptive protests on the country’s main roads. On 5 March the Rural Confederations of Argentina (CRA) announced […]
Ones to Watch, 2 March 2020
Americas: Mexico’s Pemex posts US$18.3bln loss in 2019, financial challenges to persist Sectors: all; oil & gas Key Risks: non-payment; recession; credit rating downgrade In Mexico, on 27 January state-owned oil firm Pemex announced a US$18.3bln net loss in 2019, almost double the losses reported in 2018 and its worst annual performance not primarily due to external […]
Ones to Watch, 24 February 2020
Americas: Guyana to hold long-delayed snap general elections on 2 March Sectors: all; oil & gas Key Risks: political stability; contract frustration; policy continuity; civil unrest In Guyana, long-delayed snap general elections will take place on 2 March following a December 2018 vote of no confidence against President David Granger’s government. The vote will be […]