Argentina

A set of investors owning more than 45% of a YPF bond maturing next month say they will not support the Argentine oil and gas company’s attempt to swap the notes for a combination of new senior secured bonds due in 2026 and cash — even after the issuer improved the offer on Monday. However, emboldened by the public support of a separate bondholder group, YPF responded late on Tuesday that investors should participate in the deal “with a view to contributing to the preservation of their investments”.

Argentine government-owned oil and gas company YPF again sweetened the terms of an exchange for its 2021 bonds on Monday, increasing the cash portion of the swap in an effort to persuade creditors to switch into longer dated notes and thus avoid the risk of default.

The Argentine province of Salta will in the coming days launch a restructuring offer that already has the buy-in of 40% of its creditors. Yet Buenos Aires, the country’s largest sub-sovereign issuer, is testing bondholders' patience after nine months in default.

Argentine oil and gas company YPF triggered a rally in its bonds this week by improving the terms of a proposed debt exchange that bondholders had initially rejected. Yet if the amendment was a sign of pragmatism from the government owned issuer, investors hardly saw it a reason for cheer, and yet another government related default is still on the cards.

Argentine oil and gas company YPF’s bonds rallied on Tuesday as markets acknowledged several improvements to terms on the company’s attempt to exchange all of its $6.228bn international bonds for new notes. But analysts were still undecided as to whether the amended offer would be enough for YPF to meet the necessary acceptance thresholds.

Creditors of Argentine state-owned oil and gas company YPF are fighting for their rights after being asked to participate in a debt exchange that would cause them material losses. But even if bondholders rebuff what appears to be an opportunistic offer, the attempted deal is another bad omen for investors in Argentina.

A group of investors holding more than a quarter of YPF’s $6.228bn of outstanding international bonds have confirmed that they will not participate in the company’s exchange offer, but say they do not believe they need to take further steps, for now, to block the deal.

Holders of bonds issued by Argentine state oil and gas company YPF are seeking to form a creditor committee to block a proposed distressed debt exchange that analysts say is unlikely to gain much traction with creditors.

Argentine oil and gas company YPF has launched an exchange offer for all of its $6.228bn of outstanding international bonds, taking advantage of a new central bank rule that enables companies to issue bonds guaranteed by export receivables. The proposed exchange bonds would not pay interest until 2023, and Fitch said the deal qualifies as a distressed exchange under its criteria — even though investors will end up owning more bonds than they started with.

Latin America’s largest e-commerce company MercadoLibre and Mexican cement maker Cemex kept up the hectic conditions in the LatAm primary bond market on Thursday, with the huge order book on MercadoLibre’s inaugural bond issue the clearest indication of risk appetite among EM buyers.

Latin America’s largest e-commerce company, MercadoLibre, has mandated five banks ahead of a debut bond offering that will include one tranche of sustainable bonds.

Despite funding stresses in certain Latin American countries, bond markets will continue to help the region with its financing needs. For now, this eases the pressure for reform and fiscal consolidation, but issuers must eventually face up to political and social turbulence. Oliver West reports.