/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCRLA_Public/190711.mbx        T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                 L A T I N   A M E R I C A

          Thursday, July 11, 2019, Vol. 20, No. 138

                           Headlines



B R A Z I L

GOL LINHAS: Fitch Raises LongTerm IDRs to B+, Outlook Stable
ODEBRECHT SA: Banco do Brasil Won't Raise Provisions for Losses


C H I L E

MASISA SA: Fitch Lowers IDRs to B, Outlook Negative


C O L O M B I A

CREDIVALORES CREDISERVICIOS: Fitch Alters Outlook on B+ IDR to Neg.


D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Blackouts, Politicking Roil Retailers
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Minimum Wage Climbs 14% in the Country


P U E R T O   R I C O

DISTRIBUIDORA LEQUAR: Sept. 10 Hearing on Disclosures


V E N E Z U E L A

PETROLEOS DE VENEZUELA: Seeks Compensation for Petrojam Shares
VENEZUELA: JP Morgan Cuts Weight of Bonds in EMBIG Indices
[*] VENEZUELA: International Community Discusses Collaboration

                           - - - - -


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B R A Z I L
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GOL LINHAS: Fitch Raises LongTerm IDRs to B+, Outlook Stable
------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has upgraded GOL Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A.'s
Long-Term, Foreign- and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings to
'B+' from 'B' and its National rating to 'A-(bra)' from 'BBB-(bra)'
. Fitch has also upgraded GOL Finance S.A.'s unsecured bonds
ratings to 'B+/RR4' from 'B'/'RR4'. The upgrades reflect
improvements in GOL's credit risk profile due to lower leverage,
improved costs and more favorable industry dynamics in Brazil.

The Rating Outlook is Stable and reflects Fitch's expectation that
GOL will continue to manage its growing business in a conservative
manner that will continue to support a decline in leverage and an
improvement in liquidity. Fitch's base scenario forecasts total and
net adjusted leverage/EBITDAR (not adjusted by IFRS16) ratios
moving to about 4.8x and 4.3x, respectively, during 2019-2020.
These ratios compare with 5.0x and 4.6x in 2018 and an average of
6.5x and 5.9x in 2016 and 2017, respectively.

GOL's ratings reflect the company's solid business position in the
Brazilian domestic market, with a strong presence in key airports.
Gol's lack of geographic diversification compared with regional
peers, as well as its still high leverage despite improvements over
the last few years, constrain its ratings. Additional constraints
include cash flow volatility as a result of exposure to movements
in fuel price and FX rates.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Good Market Position: The ratings reflect GOL's leading business
position in the Brazilian airline domestic market, which is viewed
as sustainable over the medium term, with a market share of around
36% as measured by revenues/passenger/kilometer in 2018. As this is
the company's key market, GOL's operating results are highly
correlated to the Brazilian economy. Due to this limited geographic
diversification, the company's FX exposure is high. GOL generates
approximately 85% of its revenues in Brazilian reals, while around
60% of its total costs and 87% of its total debt are denominated in
U.S. dollars.

Better Industry Scenario for 2019: Avianca Brasil's financial
distress/downsizing has been contributing to a healthier yield
environment as it was the most aggressive player in recent years.
The combination of market share gains and improvements in yields
should help the airlines to mitigate soft economic conditions in
Brazil, higher fuel prices and FX volatility. The expectation of a
relatively better macroeconomic environment in 2020,
notwithstanding any reverse due to political turbulence, should
benefit traffic levels and operating cash flow generation. Fitch
forecasts Brazil's GDP growth to be 2.2% in 2020. This compares
with an average of 1.2% during 2017-2018 and negative 0.3% during
2012-2016.

Operating Margins to Remain Adequate: Fitch expects GOL to sustain
its EBIT margin in the 9%-11% range during 2019 (not considering
IFRS impacts), driven by cost reduction, moderate higher passenger
yields and expectations of moderate demand recovery as the
Brazilian macroeconomic environment improves. These factors could
be partially offset by fuel cost increases, depreciation of the
Brazilian real versus the U.S. dollar and/or increasing capacity
from competitors. Fitch anticipates GOL will maintain reasonable
capacity management given the current competitive environment in
the domestic market, resulting in increase of around 8%, measured
as total available seat kilometers.

Capex to Pressure FCF: The improving operating cash flow generation
should support expansion of Gol's FCF generation during 2019.
During 2018, the company's FCF generation was BRL987 million,
resulting in FCF margin of 8.7%. Going forward, the fleet expansion
program could pressure FCF, but Fitch views GOL as having the
capacity to adjust its capex plan in an economic distress scenario
as occurred in 2016-2017. In 2016, GOL renegotiated 29 aircraft
contracts, including payment deferrals, final sale, sale-leaseback
and leasing returns. In addition, GOL postponed 11 new aircraft
deliveries during 2016-2017 to 2026-2027. Financial flexibility
related to capex could also be bolstered by GOL's financial lease
of 11 next generation planes, which could be sold through a
sale-leaseback transaction.

Deleverage Trend: Fitch expects GOL's total and net adjusted
leverage to move toward 4.8x and 4.3x, respectively, over the next
two years. This represents an improvement from 5.0x and 4.6x,
respectively, in 2018. Fitch does not incorporate any material cash
disbursement related to Smiles in the short term that could
negatively affect Gol's credit profile. Any deviation from that,
could pressure its ratings. Fitch's forecasts for leverage
calculation do not incorporate the implementation of IFRS16 as of
January 2019.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

GOL's recent operational performance compares well with those of
the other two main airlines in Latin America rated by Fitch: LATAM
Airlines Group S.A. (BB-/Stable) and Avianca Holdings S.A.
(B-/Rating Watch Negative). The rating differences between the
three airlines reflect variations in their financial strategies,
operational performance volatility and business diversification.

GOL's volatility in its operational performance over the last five
years and relatively low liquidity are incorporated into the
company's rating versus its peers. On the positive side, the
company benefited from Brazil's improving business environment and
from a capacity reduction, which both resulted in better
operational performance and declining leverage since 2017. Among
the three companies, GOL has the highest operational margin. In
addition, the ratings incorporate expectation of GOL to maintain a
solid liquidity position, measured as readily available cash as a
percentage of LTM revenues.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

Fitch's Key Assumptions Within Its Rating Case for the Issuer

  -- Capacity growth of 1%-3% in the domestic market during 2019;

  -- Low single-digit yield growth and load factor in the 79%-80%
     range;

  -- 2018-2019 EBIT margin around 10%;

  -- Neutral to negative FCF margin in 2018 and negative in 2019,
     due higher capex level;

  -- 2018-2019 liquidity, measured as readily available cash over
     LTM net revenues, in the 10%-12% range.

KEY RECOVERY RATING ASSUMPTIONS

The recovery analysis assumes that GOL would be considered a going
concern in bankruptcy and that the company would be reorganised
rather than liquidated. Fitch has assumed a 10% administrative
claim.

Going-Concern Approach: GOL's going concern EBITDA is based on an
average of 2014-2018 EBITDA that reflects a scenario of intense
volatility in the airline industry in Latin America and Brazil,
plus a discount of 20%. The going-concern EBITDA estimate reflects
Fitch's view of a sustainable, post-reorganisation EBITDA level,
upon which Fitch's bases the valuation of the company. The
EV/EBITDA multiple applied is 5.5x, reflecting GOL's strong market
position in the Brazil.
Fitch applies a waterfall analysis to the post-default enterprise
value (EV) based on the relative claims of the debt in the capital
structure. The agency's debt waterfall assumptions take into
account the company's total debt at Dec. 31, 2018. These
assumptions result in a recovery rate for the unsecured bonds
within the 'RR4' range, which per Fitch's criteria leads to
equalization of the rating to the IDR.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Developments That May, Individually or Collectively, Lead to
Positive Rating Action

  -- Liquidity, measured as cash/LTM revenues, consistently above
17%;

  -- Gross adjusted leverage consistently around 4.0x;

  -- Moving toward neutral-to-positive FCF;

  -- Coverage ratio, measured as total EBITDAR/(net interest
expense
     plus rents) consistently above 2.5x.

Developments That May, Individually or Collectively, Lead to
Negative Rating Action

  -- Total adjusted debt/EBITDAR sustained above 5.5x and/or net
     adjusted debt/EBITDAR above 4.5x;

  -- EBITDAR margin consistently below 23%;

  -- Liquidity, cash/ LTM revenues, consistently below 12%;

  -- Sustained negative FCF at levels resulting in a FCF margin
     consistently below negative 5%.

LIQUIDITY

GOL's liquidity is currently adequate, when compared with
short-term debt, after the company completed some liability
management during 2017-2018. The intense volatility of FCF
generation, as a result of business fundamentals, such as FX and
oil prices, partially mitigated by hedging instruments, leads to
ongoing refinancing risks over the medium term. As of March 31,
2019, the company had BRL2.2 billion of cash and marketable
securities and BRL7.4 billion of total financial debt, and BRL6.0
billion of leasing obligations on balance sheet. The company's
ongoing refinancing strategy over the last few quarters gave an
important relief for the company's refinancing risks during 2019.
For 2019 and 2020, GOL faces BRL1.1 billion and BRL1.2 billion of
maturities, respectively. GOL's financial flexibility is somewhat
limited by having around BRL689 million of its cash position at its
52.7% subsidiary, Smiles. GOL does not have a committed standby
credit facility.

FULL LIST OF RATING ACTIONS

Fitch has upgraded the following ratings:

Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. (GOL):

  -- Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency IDRs to 'B+' from 'B';

  -- National Long-Term Rating to 'A-(bra)' from 'BBB-(bra)'.

GOL Linhas Aereas S.A. (GLA):

  -- Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency IDRs to 'B+' from 'B';

  -- National Long-Term Rating to 'A-(bra)' from 'BBB-(bra)'.

GOL Finance:

  -- USD325 million of senior unsecured notes due 2022 to
'B+'/'RR4' from 'B'/'RR4'.

GOL Finance Inc.:

  -- USD650 million of senior unsecured notes due 2025 to
'B+'/'RR4' from 'B'/'RR4';

  -- USD200 million perpetual bonds to 'B+'/'RR4' from 'B'/'RR4'.

The Corporate Rating Outlook is Stable.


ODEBRECHT SA: Banco do Brasil Won't Raise Provisions for Losses
---------------------------------------------------------------
Marcela Ayres at Reuters report that Banco do Brasil has no plans
to raise provisions for expected losses relating to the bankruptcy
of conglomerate Odebrecht, the state-controlled bank's president,
Rubem Novaes, said.

Odebrecht filed for bankruptcy protection last month with debts of
almost BRL100 billion (US$26 billion), marking the largest
corporate collapse in Brazilian history. Of the company's BRL18.1
billion in unsecured bank debt, BRL4.75 billion are with Banco do
Brasil, according to Reuters.

Speaking to journalists in Brasilia, Novaes said that it will not
be necessary to increase Banco do Brasil's provisioning
specifically because of Odebrecht, the report relays.

                        About Odebrecht SA

Odebrecht S.A. -- www.odebrecht.com -- is a Brazilian conglomerate
consisting of diversified businesses in the fields of engineering,
construction, chemicals and petrochemicals. Odebrecht S.A. is a
holding company for Construtora Norberto Odebrecht S.A., the
biggest engineering and contracting company in Latin America, and
Braskem S.A., the largest petrochemicals producer in Latin America
and one of Brazil's five largest private-sector manufacturing
companies. Odebrecht controls Braskem, which by revenue is the
fourth largest petrochemical company in the Americas.

On June 17, 2019, Odebrecht filed for bankruptcy protection, aiming
to restructure BRL51 billion (US$13 billion) of debt.

The bankruptcy filing comes after years of struggles for Odebrecht,
the biggest of the Brazilian engineering groups caught in a
sweeping political corruption investigation that has rippled across
Latin America, Reuters relayed, as reported by The Troubled Company
Reporter - Latin America.




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C H I L E
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MASISA SA: Fitch Lowers IDRs to B, Outlook Negative
---------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has downgraded the Long-Term Foreign- and
Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings of Masisa S.A. to 'B' from
'B+' and its National Long-Term Rating to 'BBB-(cl)' from
'BBB(cl)'. The rating Outlook remains Negative. At the same time,
Fitch is withdrawing the National Short-Term Rating of Masisa as it
is no longer considered by Fitch to be relevant to the agency's
coverage because the company no longer issues public short-term
debt.

The downgrade reflects Masisa's slow process of deleveraging
relative to Fitch's expectations - despite divestitures in
Argentina, Brazil and Mexico - its fragile cash flow generation,
and still-high leverage. Challenges faced by the company that are
incorporated in the Negative Outlook include its limited scope of
operation, slow economic growth in Latin America, intense
competition with larger companies and weak local currencies in
Mexico and Argentina.

A revision of the rating Outlook to Stable and positive rating
action depend on the success of Masisa's ability to sell forestry
assets in Chile and Argentina over the next year, as well as the
use of proceeds to reduce debt.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

High Leverage: Masisa was unable to significantly improve its
capital structure after finalizing the sale of part of its Mexican
assets, as reflected by still-high leverage ratios. As of March
2019 and after receiving funds from the transaction, gross and net
debt to recurring EBITDA reached 7.2x and 5.3x, respectively.
Masisa's net debt was USD404 million, with a last 12 months
recurring EBITDA of USD76 million. Fitch projects that Masisa will
not be able to further reduce debt based on its internal cash
generation and that its credit metrics will continue to deteriorate
absent asset sales.

Less Diversified Business Profile: Masisa's strategy to sell its
industrial units in Argentina, Brazil and two out of three
facilities in Mexico weakened the company's geographic
diversification and business scale. The company is facing a
significant reduction in size and operational presence in key
markets, while trying to differentiate itself from strong regional
competition posed by Celulosa Arauco y Constitucion S.A.
(BBB/Stable) and other board producers. With a revamped strategy,
Masisa will concentrate its business strategy on value-added board
products and services in the Andean region, Central America, the
U.S., Canada and other export markets. Competition in many of these
markets remains intense.

Sale of Forestry Assets Key to Improve Capital Structure: The sale
of the forestry assets in Chile and Argentina would allow the
company to reduce leverage and strengthen its liquidity position
and capital structure. The company estimates that these sales could
generate more than USD500 million of proceeds. Masisa intends to
develop its business based on long-term contracts with wood
suppliers. However, the divestiture of the forestry assets will
leave Masisa with limited physical assets that it can monetize to
improve liquidity during downturns, as it has done in the past.
Fitch will evaluate the final capital structure after the
transaction concludes, which could lead to positive rating action
depending on the amount of debt that is prepaid and the recurrent
operational cash flow that Masisa would be able to generate under
its new strategy based only on the industrial business.

Weak Operating Metrics: Masisa has not been able to improve the
EBITDA generation from its industrial business due to weak demand,
a tight margin and, more recently, the trade dispute between the
U.S. and China. Fitch expects Masisa to keep posting negative FCF
in 2019, compensated by the Mexican asset sale finalized in early
2019. Going forward, the lower capex requirements should allow
Masisa to post neutral to positive FCF.

Deconsolidation of Venezuela: Masisa had a significant asset
presence in Venezuela and is exposed to exchange controls. The
company now deconsolidates the financial results from this country,
which comprise only 3% of EBITDA. Fitch is not factoring any upside
over the next two to three years for these operating assets.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

Masisa has operations in Chile and Mexico, and a commercial
presence in the U.S. and all Latin America. Masisa is an important
producer of wood boards in Latin America, with 1.1 million cubic
meters of installed capacity of particle boards, MDP and MDF,
218,000 cubic meters of moldings, pro forma after the sale of its
Mexican operations, and 212,000 cubic meters of sawn wood.

The company's main competitors are Brazilian Duratex (not rated),
the segment leader in Latin America, and Chilean-based Arauco, the
world's third-largest market pulp company and one of the largest
board and lumber manufacturers.

Among the Latin America forestry product companies, like Arauco,
Empresas CMPC S.A. (BBB/Stable), Suzano S.A. (BBB-/Stable), and
Klabin S.A. (BB+/Stable), Masisa is more exposed to economic
weakness in Latin America, as its activities are concentrated in
boards, it has higher leverage and a more limited liquidity
position. After the sales of its industrial facilities in
Argentina, Brazil and two of three of its production facilities in
Mexico, Masisa's EBITDA generation is largely concentrated in
industrial production from Chile, which is mitigated by exports
that represent 57% of revenue.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

Fitch's Key Assumptions Within Its Rating Case for the Issuer

  -- Masisa does not receive further EBITDA from forestry
     transactions during 2019.

  -- Flat sales from Andean division in 2019 and low single
     digits growth afterwards.

  -- EBITDA from Mexico of around USD3 million.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Developments that May, Individually or Collectively, Lead to
Positive Rating Action

  -- Masisa concludes the forestry asset transactions and
     reduces a significant amount of debt.

  -- Gross leverage consistently below 4.0x

  -- Improvement of the value-added product contribution to
EBITDA.

  -- Cash to short-term debt coverage consistently above 1.25x

Developments that May, Individually or Collectively, Lead to
Negative Rating Action

  -- Gross leverage above 6.0x.

  -- Consistently negative FCF.

  -- Cash to short-term debt coverage consistently below 1.00x.

LIQUIDITY

Adequate Liquidity: The sale of two of its three Mexican facilities
for USD160 million allowed Masisa to prepay two of its outstanding
bonds, reducing amortization. The company has enough cash to pay
its short-term commitments; most of its short-term bank debt is
revolving. As of June 2019, Fitch estimates that the company's cash
to short-term debt ratio was around 0.3x, but the main portion of
that debt is pre-export financing related to working capital.
Considering only amortization of long-term debt, the ratio is
around 3.0x.

The announced sale of its forestry base, while it will improve
liquidity, removes the company from a reserve of value previously
used in moments of economic downturns, which could limit financial
flexibility in the long run.

FULL LIST OF RATING ACTIONS

Fitch has taken the following rating actions:

Masisa S.A.

  -- Long-Term Foreign- and Local-Currency IDRs downgraded to 'B'
     from 'B+'

  -- National Long-Term Rating downgraded to 'BBB-(cl)' from
     'BBB(cl)'

  -- National scale rating of Bond Lines downgraded to 'BBB-(cl)'
     from 'BBB(cl)'

  -- National Equity Rating affirmed at 'First Class Level 3(cl)'

  -- National Short-Term Rating withdrawn

The rating Outlook is Negative.




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CREDIVALORES CREDISERVICIOS: Fitch Alters Outlook on B+ IDR to Neg.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Credivalores Crediservicios S.A.S.'s
Long-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating at 'B+' and
Short-Term Foreign Currency IDR at 'B'. The Rating Outlook was
revised to Negative from Stable. Fitch also affirmed Credivalores'
senior unsecured notes at 'B+'/'RR4'.

The Outlook revision to Negative reflects deterioration of asset
quality metrics, which has added pressure on already modest profits
and loss absorption capacity. The entity has recently taken on
several strategies to reduce impairments and charge-offs such as
reducing credit card portfolio proportion of loans, tightening cut
off levels and underwriting adjustments in the most impacted
regions. Fitch believes if these actions are not strong enough to
revert asset quality and profitability trends, which could add some
stress to leverage metrics, ratings could be downgraded.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Credivalores' IDRs are highly influenced by the company's profile
and concentrated nature within the financial system, which, despite
is small size, benefits from its role as one of the largest
non-bank financial institutions engaged in consumer lending to the
low-to-mid income population not usually served by banks in small
and mid-sized cities, and its pressured asset quality metrics. The
ratings also consider the company's relatively ample risk appetite
due to its focus on low to middle income segments, modest
profitability and increased leverage along with the company's
funding flexibility.

Recent quarters have seen an increase in non-performing loans and
charge-offs, especially in the credit card segments. This, along
with the adoption of IFRS 9, has resulted in higher credit costs
that affected the company's profitability. To mitigate the
deterioration in asset quality, the company has imposed tighter
underwriting policies and made additional system improvements that
Fitch expects will reverse the impairment trend.

Credivalores' ratio of non-performing loans past due over 60 days
(NPL) deteriorated to 15% as of March 2019 mainly due to the credit
card portfolio affected by insufficiently tight cut off levels and
weaknesses in certain cities' unemployment affected by immigration.
The overall loan loss coverage ratio also declined to 87% from 94%,
but still remains satisfactory in view of the lower risk of its
payroll loan segment, which represents nearly 59% of the total
managed loan portfolio.

Credivalores' profitability remained modest for 2018 and the first
quarter of 2019 with pre-tax income to average assets ratios of
0.7% and 0.1%, respectively, affected by higher credit costs, lower
loan growth and higher investments. The company expects the
remainder of 2019 to be lacklustre in terms of profitability.

To mitigate the low level of internal capital generation and
effects from IFRS adoption on tangible leverage, the company's
shareholders made a capital infusion of COP15 billion combined
during the last quarter of 2018 and the first quarter of 2019.
Despite this increase, the rating also considers Credivalores'
relatively higher leverage ratios for its concentrated and
higher-risk business model. Fitch believes future leverage metrics
could be relatively pressured due to expected on-balance sheet loan
growth if the modest earnings levels fail to generate additional
capital growth.

Current funding and liquidity metrics remain at satisfactory levels
with average maturity tenors of close to three years. The company
has been able to expand its sources of funding from both domestic
and foreign lenders. The main source of funding comes from its U.S.
dollar medium-term note issuances that come due in July of 2022.
Sources of funding appear sufficient to cover upcoming 2019 debt
amortizations and fund future growth.

Fitch believes management needs to prove effective in executing its
strategies in enhancing asset quality, profitability and leverage
metrics that have deteriorated over the past few years. Tightening
of its underwriting policies, the addition of a new chief risk
officer, new alliances with utility companies, together with an
increased credit granting agility should prove to be strong enough
to enhance financial performance. However, these improvements are
subject to the continued strengthening of the operating
environment, the degree of competition and other unforeseen
events.




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D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C
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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Blackouts, Politicking Roil Retailers
---------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports the president of Dominican Republic's
retailers grouped in Fenacerd, warned that the blackouts and the
political crisis are harming business and spawning a lack of will
for new investments.

Manuel Ortiz called on politicians to show "maturity" to the
electorate and resolve conflicts as soon as possible, since the
situation in his view, "is not only creating uncertainty and
concern in the Dominican people, but also in the owners of small
and medium businesses," according to Dominican Today.

"Another threat that retailers in the city's neighborhoods and
provinces face is the drop in sales, registering between 24% and
30% in the second quarter of the year," the report quoted Mr. Ortiz
as saying.

The report notes that Mr. Ortiz also asked the Presidency to issue
an executive order to enact the Single Tax System, "since it will
be a solution for MSMEs to formalize and access social security."

                   About Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean nation that shares the island
of Hispaniola with Haiti to the west. Capital city Santo Domingo
has Spanish landmarks like the Gothic Catedral Primada de America
dating back 5 centuries in its Zona Colonial district.

The Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America reported on April 4,
2019 that the Dominican Today related that Juan Del Rosario of the
UASD Economic Faculty cited a current economic slowdown for the
Dominican Republic and cautioned that if the trend continues,
growth would reach only 4% by 2023. Mr. Del Rosario said that if
that happens, "we'll face difficulties in meeting international
commitments."

An ongoing concern in the Dominican Republic is the inability of
participants in the electricity sector to establish financial
viability for the system.

Standard & Poor's credit rating for Dominican Republic stands at
BB- with stable outlook (2015). Moody's credit rating for Dominican
Republic was last set at Ba3 with stable outlook (2017). Fitch's
credit rating for Dominican Republic was last reported at BB- with
stable outlook (2016).


DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Minimum Wage Climbs 14% in the Country
----------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that the minimum wage for the private
sector -- currently around RD$10,000 (US$200) monthly -- will climb
14% retroactive to July 1, according to the agreement reached Tues.
between labor and management in the National Wages Committee.

The increase will not be retroactive as the last time, and will
take effect at once and not in installments, according to Dominican
Today.

The report notes that the parties, unions and employers, agreed to
resolve the issue of the reclassification of companies within two
months.

The agreement caps nearly a year of talks in which labor initially
demanded a 30% increase, the report says.

                       About Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean nation that shares the island
of Hispaniola with Haiti to the west. Capital city Santo Domingo
has Spanish landmarks like the Gothic Catedral Primada de America
dating back 5 centuries in its Zona Colonial district.

The Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America reported on April 4,
2019 that the Dominican Today related that Juan Del Rosario of the
UASD Economic Faculty cited a current economic slowdown for the
Dominican Republic and cautioned that if the trend continues,
growth would reach only 4% by 2023. Mr. Del Rosario said that if
that happens, "we'll face difficulties in meeting international
commitments."

An ongoing concern in the Dominican Republic is the inability of
participants in the electricity sector to establish financial
viability for the system.

Standard & Poor's credit rating for Dominican Republic stands at
BB- with stable outlook (2015). Moody's credit rating for Dominican
Republic was last set at Ba3 with stable outlook (2017). Fitch's
credit rating for Dominican Republic was last reported at BB- with
stable outlook (2016).




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P U E R T O   R I C O
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DISTRIBUIDORA LEQUAR: Sept. 10 Hearing on Disclosures
-----------------------------------------------------
Bankruptcy Judge Enrique S. Lamoutte will convene a hearing on
Sept. 10, 2019 at 10:00 a.m. to consider and rule upon the adequacy
Distribuidora Lequar, Inc.'s disclosure statement.

Written objections to the disclosure statement must be filed and
served not less than 14 days prior to the hearing.

The Troubled Company Reporter previously reported that unsecured
creditors under the plan will be paid in full satisfaction of their
claims 2% thereof on the Effective Date from a $50,000 carve out
reserved for this Class.

A full-text copy of the Disclosure Statement dated June 12, 2019,
is available at https://tinyurl.com/y3znxsmr from PacerMonitor.com
at no charge.

                  About Distribuidora Lequar

Founded in 1963, Distribuidora Lequar, Inc. sells men's, women's
and children's footwear.  It is located in Rio Piedras, Puerto
Rico.

Distribuidora Lequar sought protection under Chapter 11 of the
Bankruptcy Code (Bankr. D.P.R. Case No. 18-05107) on Sept. 1,
2018.

In the petition signed by Albert Bejar Bitton, vice-president, the
Debtor disclosed $4,095,449 in assets and $8,011,822 in
liabilities.  Judge Enrique S. Lamoutte Inclan oversees the case.
Charles A. Cuprill, P.S.C. Law Office is the Debtor's legal
counsel.




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V E N E Z U E L A
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PETROLEOS DE VENEZUELA: Seeks Compensation for Petrojam Shares
--------------------------------------------------------------
Caribbean360.com reports that Jamaican Minister of Science, Energy
and Technology Fayval Williams said Petroleos de Venezuela S.A.
(PDVSA) has brought a compensation claim against the Government of
Jamaica over the retake of the company's 49 per cent shares in
Petrojam.

She made the disclosure following the tabling of the Report on the
strategic review of the State-owned oil refinery, according to
Caribbean360.com.

"We have been notified of one claim from PDV, and it's in keeping
with the provisions of The Compulsory Acquisition (Shares in
Petrojam Limited) Act.  The claim has been made in the Supreme
Court all the documents are being reviewed [by] the Attorney
General," Williams said in response to questions posed by
Opposition Spokesperson on Energy, Phillip Paulwell, the report
relays.

She said she would make a statement to the House, after being fully
briefed on the issue by Attorney General Marlene Malahoo Forte, the
report notes.

Legislation to retake ownership of the 49 per cent shares in
Petrojam held by the Venezuelan State-owned oil and natural gas
company, PDV Caribe, was passed in both Houses of Parliament in
February, the report discloses.

The move was taken in a bid to safeguard the country's energy
security.

             About PDVSA

Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. is the Venezuelan state-owned oil and
natural gas company. It has activities in exploration, production,
refining and exporting oil as well as exploration and production of
natural gas.

As reported in Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on June 3,
2019, Moody's Investors Service withdrew all the ratings of
Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. including the senior unsecured and
senior secured ratings due to insufficient information. At the time
of withdrawal, the ratings were C and the outlook was stable.


VENEZUELA: JP Morgan Cuts Weight of Bonds in EMBIG Indices
----------------------------------------------------------
Miluska Berrospi at International Finance Review reports that the
weight of Venezuela and Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA) bonds
will be phased to zero in the EMBIG indices over a five-month
period beginning July 31, JP Morgan said.

The decision was in line with market expectations, which was
expecting a middle-of-the-road solution since the bank announced it
was putting the bonds under review on April 11, according to
International Finance Review.

"Venezuela is still in the index so that means that guys who are
index holders aren't forced to sell," said Edwin Gutierrez, a
portfolio manager with Aberdeen Asset Management, the report
notes.

"Granted, if you're a guy who has to replicate the index, the index
is now zero so you become a de facto seller. But this was their
elegant compromise," he added.

"At the end of this phase-down period, Venezuela Republic and PDVSA
bonds will remain in the index composition, but no longer
contribute to headline total return or analytics (since the bonds
will have zero weight in the benchmark)," JP Morgan said in a
report, International Finance Review discloses.

Mark-to-market index pricing will also continue, the bank said.

Official index pricing for the sovereign's bonds during and after
the phased reduction is completed will continue as long as the
securities are included in the benchmark, added the report,
International Finance Review relays.

The EMBIGD spread is expected to compress by an estimated 45bp due
to the re-weighting although total returns are not expected to be
significantly impacted, International Finance Review says.

Due to the recalibration, countries like Mexico, Brazil and
Argentina will go down in their weight percentage by November 29,
when the reduction to zero concludes, International Finance Review
notes. All three countries will see their weight in JP Morgan's
EMBIGD and EMBIG reduced by at least half a point.

The national oil-company PDVSA saw its bonds trading at around 15
cents in the dollar, Reuters reported, International Finance Review
relays.

"This option allows them to fulfill their responsibilities as an
index provider, while still acknowledging the unique circumstances
surrounding Venezuela," said Patrick Estruelas, head of research at
asset manager Emso, the report notes.

                        Political Uncertainty

US investors have been sidelined from trading their investments in
the country since the Trump administration halted trading
Venezuelan assets earlier this year, International Finance Review
says.

The decision leaves those invested in the country, which defaulted
on its debt in 2017, amid a vastly illiquid market, the report
notes.

Opposition leader Juan Guaido, who declared himself president in
January, has been unsuccessful in his attempts to overthrow
President Nicolas Maduro, who maintains control of the military,
the report relays.

Earlier this month, the US-backed Guaido outlined a debt
restructuring plan via his advisors, should his administration take
control of the country, the report notes.

In handling the country's $200 billion debt load, advisors to
Guaido outlined a plan to treat all creditors equally despite the
different types of debt owed, the report discloses.

Venezuela's bondholders committee answered on Tuesday by appealing
to Guaido and the National Assembly to work on a debt negotiation
framework, the report adds.

                        About Venezuela

Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a
country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a
continental landmass and a large number of small islands and islets
in the Caribbean sea.  The capital is the city of Caracas.

Hugo Chavez was president to Venezuela from 1999 to 2013.  The
Chavez presidency was plagued with challenges, which included a
2002 coup d'etat, a 2002 national strike and a 2004 recall
referendum.  Nicolas Maduro was elected president in 2013 after the
death of Chavez.  Maduro won a second term at the May 2018
Venezuela elections, but this result has been challenged by
countries including Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Canada,
Germany, France and the United States who deemed it fraudulent and
moved to recognize Juan Guaido as president.

The presidencies of Chavez and Maduro have challenged Venezuela
with a socioeconomic and political crisis.  It is marked by
hyperinflation, climbing hunger, poverty, disease, crime and death
rates, social unrest, corruption and emigration from the country.

Standard and Poor's long- and short-term foreign currency sovereign
credit ratings for Venezuela stands at 'SD/D' (November 2017).
S&P's local currency sovereign credit ratings on the other hand are
'CCC-/C'. The May 2018 outlook on the long-term local currency
sovereign credit rating is negative, reflecting S&P's view that the
sovereign could miss a payment on its outstanding local currency
debt obligations or advance a distressed debt exchange operation,
equivalent to default.

Moody's credit rating (long term foreign and domestic issuer
ratings) for Venezuela was last set at C with stable outlook (March
2018).

Fitch's long term issuer default rating for Venezuela was last set
at RD (2017) and country ceiling was CC. Fitch, on June 27, 2019,
affirmed then withdrew the ratings due to the imposition of U.S.
sanctions on Venezuela.


[*] VENEZUELA: International Community Discusses Collaboration
--------------------------------------------------------------
Representatives of cooperation agencies, along with directors and
counselors of the Inter-American Development Bank's (IDB) member
countries, met on July 8, 2019, with the Bank's administration at
the institution's headquarters to discuss possible areas of
collaboration in support of Venezuela.

During the meeting, IDB specialists presented an analysis of the
macroeconomic outlook and the main development challenges facing
Venezuela.

Participants discussed the situation in sectors such as poverty and
access to food and basic goods, health, education, energy,
transportation and water and sanitation. They also explored
specific areas in which governments and donor agencies could
eventually support Venezuela.

Several participants expressed concern about the humanitarian
crisis in Venezuela and conveyed the desire of their governments to
contribute to the comprehensive recovery of the country, beyond
political considerations.

They also emphasized the importance of utilizing networks that
already exist between embassies in Washington and national
technical cooperation agencies that oversee development programs.

                         About Venezuela

Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a
country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a
continental landmass and a large number of small islands and islets
in the Caribbean sea.  The capital is the city of Caracas.

Hugo Chavez was president to Venezuela from 1999 to 2013.  The
Chavez presidency was plagued with challenges, which included a
2002 coup d'etat, a 2002 national strike and a 2004 recall
referendum.  Nicolas Maduro was elected president in 2013 after the
death of Chavez.  Maduro won a second term at the May 2018Venezuela
elections, but this result has been challenged by countries
including Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Canada, Germany,
France and the United States who deemed it fraudulent and moved to
recognize Juan Guaido as president.

The presidencies of Chavez and Maduro have challenged Venezuela
with a socioeconomic and political crisis.  It is marked by
hyperinflation, climbing hunger, poverty, disease, crime and death
rates, social unrest, corruption and emigration from the country.

Standard and Poor's long- and short-term foreign currency sovereign
credit ratings for Venezuela stands at 'SD/D' (November 2017).

S&P's local currency sovereign credit ratings are 'CCC-/C'. The May
2018 outlook on the long-term local currency sovereign credit
rating is negative, reflecting S&P's view that the sovereign could
miss a payment on its outstanding local currency debt obligations
or advance a distressed debt exchange operation, equivalent to
default.

Moody's credit rating (long term foreign and domestic issuer
ratings) for Venezuela was last set at C with stable outlook (March
2018).

Fitch's long term issuer default rating for Venezuela was last set
at RD (2017) and country ceiling was CC. Fitch, on June 27, 2019,
affirmed then withdrew the ratings due to the imposition of U.S.
sanctions on Venezuela.



                           *********


S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America is a daily newsletter
co-published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Fairless
Hills, Pennsylvania, USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, D.C.,
USA, Marites O. Claro, Joy A. Agravante, Rousel Elaine T.
Fernandez, Julie Anne L. Toledo, Ivy B. Magdadaro, and Peter A.
Chapman, Editors.

Copyright 2019.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2746.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
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Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to
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delivered via e-mail.  Additional e-mail subscriptions for members
of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription or
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