Belize Nears Default After Missing $23 Million Bond Payment
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Belize neared default after the Central American country missed a payment today on about $544 million of bonds and Finance Secretary Joseph Waight said the government is unlikely to pay during a 30-day grace period.
The government can’t make today’s $23 million bond payment, Waight said in a phone interview from Belmopan City. Prime Minister Dean Barrow, who won re-election in March, said a restructuring was needed after the coupon on the country’s so-called superbond climbed to 8.5 percent this year from 6 percent as part of an accord reached with investors in 2007.