Paraguay ready to place USD 500 million in bonds

By BKM | Berkemeyer

Paraguay's finance minister Benigno López announced the country is close to sold USD 500 million in bonds at a time of declining global prices for export commodities and a weak 2019 growth in Brazil and Argentina, Paraguay's main trade partners. “We want to be ready to take advantage of the market conditions”, López said to Bloomberg.

In February 2019 the government placed USD 500 million as a 31-year Eurobond at 5.4 percent, its lowest rate for long-term notes, as investors rewarded the country for solid economic growth and low debt levels. “International investors have already showed confidence in Paraguay’s overall macroeconomic management and outlook”, the World Bank stated in a recent 2019 report.

After a strong performance in 2018, economic growth in Paraguay decelerated in 2019 due to suboptimal performance of the main trading partners, especially Argentina. The monthly index of economic activity indicates that economic growth remained sluggish throughout the year.