Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Holiday Gift Guide
Gift ideas & reviews for this holiday season
Start Browsing
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Environment
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
You Witness
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
You Witness News
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Ecuador defaults, says to fight "monster" creditors
Fri Dec 12, 2008 6:43pm EST
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Maria Eugenia Tello
GUAYAQUIL, Ecuador (Reuters) - President Rafael Correa declared a default on Ecuador's foreign sovereign bonds on Friday, vowing to fight "monster" debt-holders in court in one of most aggressive moves against investors in the region for years.
Ecuador's dollar-denominated debt prices plunged on news of its second default in a decade and the first in Latin America since Argentina in 2002, although the decision was not expected to lead to similar moves around the region.
Correa, a U.S.-trained economist and ally of Venezuela's anti-U.S. President Hugo Chavez, refused to make a $31 million interest payment due on Monday on 2012 global bonds, saying the debt was contracted illegally by a previous administration.
"I gave the order not to pay the interest and to go into default," Correa said. "We know very well who we are up against -- real monsters."
"If we have to face international litigation due to this, we will," he added at a news conference in the OPEC nation's largest city of Guayaquil.
The default is unlikely to have a knock-on effect in other Latin American countries' debt policies even if some, such as Venezuela, have pledged to investigate any irregularities in their own debt, Wall St. economists said.
Correa, who had often threatened to default, will offer bond-holders a tough restructuring deal. Last month, Ricardo Patino, a top debt adviser to Correa, said investors should expect a reduction of more than 60 percent in the nominal value of the global paper in any negotiations.
Ecuador's global bonds -- the 2012s, 2015s and 2030s -- total $3.8 billion of its roughly $10 billion debt.
Ecuador will for now keep servicing debt of about $5.8 billion owed to multilateral organizations and other countries, Patino, the minister for politics, told Reuters .
But Patino, who was on a trip to the United States to make Ecuador's case that much of its debt is illegal, did not rule out stopping such payments.
"LIFE BEFORE DEBT"
Although the default decision comes against the backdrop of a global financial crisis, Ecuador received record income from oil exports for much of the year and has enough funds to make the payment. Correa's policy is driven by ideological rejection of such debt deals, according to economists.
Correa, whose political slogan is "life before debt," is popular among Ecuadoreans for his stance against investors.
He has already forced foreign companies to change contract terms in the oil and mining industries and ejected a major Brazilian building company in a dispute over a dam construction as he seeks to increase state income.
But the default is his harshest move in almost two years in office and is in keeping with a shift toward confrontation in the region between leftist governments and foreign investors. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
My Web
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
Colombia extradites suspected drug lord to U.S.
China Now
The world's fourth biggest economy is at a crossroad as it celebrates 30 years of reforms. Full Article
Fruits of reform can be bitter
"Cancer village" pays ultimate price
Timeline: Milestones since 1978
Slideshow: Scenes from the past
Blog: Reporters' notes from China
Related News
SCENARIOS: Possible scenarios after Ecuador debt default
2:46pm EST
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
Recommended
Jim Rogers calls most big U.S. banks "bankrupt"
Bush may tap bailout fund to aid automakers
Bernard Madoff arrested over alleged $50 billion fraud
1950s pin-up queen Bettie Page dies
Ice storms knock power out across NY, New England
Obama can sign U.N. climate pact before U.S. law: Kerry
Detroit workers stunned, angered as bailout stalls
Visa CEO loses his credit cards
Legal experts see wide fallout from Madoff case
Keanu Reeves falls to "Earth" in silly remake
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
Fresh riots grip Athens
Enough Troops?
Peru student clashes
Anger over Mumbai arrests
Auto bailout held up
Obama: Illinois Gov. should resign
Obama nativity a bestseller
al Qaeda arrests near EU summit
Daytime clashes in Athens
Talk of the Town-Golden Globes
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
Congo
Death all around
Witness
Award winning Reuters photographer Finbarr O'Reilly recounts the horrors of living on the front line of the conflict in eastern Congo. Blog
Slideshow: Images from Congo
Video: The long wait for refugees
Blog: Caught in Chad rebel offensive
Reuters Deals
The global destination for corporate leaders, deal-makers and innovators
Knowledge to Act
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Interactive TV |
Labs |
Reuters in Second Life |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.