Nearly 50% of issuers rated by to fit operate in regulated industries (mainly public services) with flows of stable money and predictable that support liquidity profiles.
The rating agency predicts that macroeconomic conditions in Colombia will deteriorate this year, driven by lower consumption.
In addition, high and still rising nominal interest rates (currently 12.75%) will erode purchasing power, in addition to the depreciation of the Colombian peso against the dollar, which reached 21.0% in 2022, while inflation was 13.2 % was above the regional average.
The report shows that Colombian companies rated by Fitch have significant maturities in 2023-2024, up to $11.7 billion. Of this, USD 7.9 billion corresponds to bank debt, USD 1.5 billion to local bonds and USD 2.3 billion to international bonds.
The issuers with the largest outstanding balances are Ecopetrol SA with more than USD 4 billion, Grupo Energía Bogotá SAESP and Empresas Públicas de Medellín ESP with more than USD 1 billion each, and Enel Colombia SAESP and Cementos Argos SA with almost USD 500 million each.
The building materials and construction sector contributes 52% to total maturities in 2023–2024, excluding energy and public services.
Rising prices of raw materials, cost of energy and freight costs, coupled with the inability to pass cost increases on to customers, will impact FFO generation and increase refinancing risk for issuers.
Source: El heraldo
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
