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       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

          Tuesday, April 11, 2023, Vol. 24, No. 73

                           Headlines



A R G E N T I N A

ARGENTINA: Bil. in Legal Losses Push Country Closer to the Brink
ARGENTINA: Implements Special Exchange Rate to Boost Reserves


B R A Z I L

LIGHT SA: Moody's Lowers CFR to Caa3 & Alters Outlook to Negative
PILGRIM'S PRIDE: Moody's Rates New $500MM Unsecured Notes 'Ba3'


D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Reduces Growth Forecast for 2023 to 4.25%


J A M A I C A

JAMAICA: BoJ Injects US$30M into the FX Market


X X X X X X X X

CARIBBEAN: Visitor Arrivals Behind by 1% Compared to 2019

                           - - - - -


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A R G E N T I N A
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ARGENTINA: Bil. in Legal Losses Push Country Closer to the Brink
----------------------------------------------------------------
Buenos Aires Times reports that a pair of back-to-back court losses
stand to push Argentina's already precarious finances to the
brink.

The country's dollar bonds are sinking after courts in the United
States and United Kingdom sided with investors in a series of
lawsuits - which separately enforce payouts tied to growth-linked
securities and the nationalization of an oil company a decade ago,
according to Buenos Aires Times.

The judgments are just the latest challenge for Argentina, which is
struggling to control 100 percent inflation as foreign reserves
dwindle, a drought ravages export crops and a presidential election
looms in October, the report notes.

"This is one of those cases where history repeats itself," said
Sebastian Maril, managing director at Latam Advisors, a Buenos
Aires-based consultancy, the report notes.  While the courts have
yet to release details on how much Argentina is liable to pay in
either case, he expects the settlements to be in the billions of
dollars, the report relays.

The two cases are an indication that Argentina's long history of
legal trouble is far from over. In the past two decades, the
government has been forced to pay at least US$17 billion in
settlements to investors in expropriated companies and to holdouts
on defaulted bonds, Maril estimates, the report discloses.

"Imagine what could have been done to fund education, highways, or
the electric grid since the year 2000 with US$17 billion," he said,
the report relays.

Argentina's bonds extended losses after the latest ruling out of
the UK, which holds the nation liable for losses in so-called GDP
warrants after the country changed its method of calculating
growth, the report notes.

A third US-based court case will be heard later this year over a
similar dispute involving Argentina's dollar-denominated warrants,
being led by hedge fund Aurelius Capital Management, the report
relays.

The nation's debt due in 2029 fell as much as 1.6 cents to around
26 cents on the dollar, the lowest in a week, the report says.

Such deep distress is raising the stakes for whichever
administration is in power after Argentines head to the polls in
October, the report discloses.  That government stands to inherit
both the potential legal payouts, as well as a US$65-billion pile
of overseas bonds that begins maturing in 2025, the report notes.

"Where the new administration will source the hard currency cash to
meet these legal claims is an open question, and this morning a few
aggressive traders are shooting first and asking questions later,"
Portfolio Personal Inversiones analysts led by Pedro Siaba Serrate
wrote in a note, the report relays.

Lawyers representing Argentina's government say they will seek
permission to appeal the UK court's ruling on the nation's euro GDP
warrants case, according to an emailed statement from law firm
Sullivan & Cromwell, the report says.

Argentina "believes that the London court has wrongly interpreted
the terms of the securities and intends to seek permission to
appeal," Sullivan & Cromwell co-chair Robert Giuffra Jr. said, the
report relays.

The country is no stranger to lengthy court battles, with
Vice-President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner a staunch critic of
what she called "vulture funds," the report notes.  Argentina spent
more than a decade at odds with hedge funds including Paul Singer's
Elliott Management Corp, which seized a naval ship as collateral to
force the country to pay defaulted bonds, the report discloses.

Former president Mauricio Macri finally ended up paying the
creditors around US$5 billion in 2016 to lift a court injunction
and pave the way for Argentina's return to international capital
markets, the report relays.

"An appeal will only buy Argentina time, so negotiations on the
size of the compensation and the payment scheme will take place in
the next administration," said Ramiro Blazquez, head of strategy at
BancTrust & Co in Buenos Aires, the report adds.

                      About Argentina

Argentina is a country located mostly in the southern half of South
America. Its capital is Buenos Aires. Alberto Angel Fernandez is
the current president of Argentina after winning the October 2019
general election. He succeeded Mauricio Macri in the position.

Argentina has the third largest economy in Latin America.  The
country's economy is an upper middle-income economy for fiscal year
2019, according to the World Bank. Historically, however, its
economic performance has been very uneven, with high economic
growth alternating with severe recessions, income maldistribution
and in the recent decades, increasing poverty.

Last March 25, 2022, Argentina finalized agreement with the IMF for
a new USD44 billion Extended Funding Facility (EFF) intended to
fund USD40 billion in looming repayments of the defunct Stand-By
Arrangement (SBA), with an extra USD4 billion in up-front net
financing. This has averted the risk of a default to the IMF
and is facilitating a parallel rescheduling of Paris Club debt.

S&P Global Ratings, on March 29, 2023, lowered its long-term
foreign currency sovereign credit rating on Argentina to 'CCC-'
from 'CCC+'. S&P also affirmed its 'C' short-term foreign currency
sovereign credit rating and its 'CCC-/C' local currency ratings on
Argentina. The outlook on the long-term ratings is negative. S&P
also lowered the transfer and convertibility assessment to 'CCC-'
from 'CCC+'.

The negative outlook on the long-term ratings reflects risks
surrounding pronounced economic imbalances and policy uncertainties
before and after the 2023 national elections. Divisions across the
political spectrum constrain the sovereign's ability to implement
timely changes in economic policy. Global capital markets are
closed to Argentina. In the local market, swaps are being deployed
to manage large maturities before placing debt through traditional
auctions. The central bank continues to play a key role as a
backstop for local debt management in the secondary market. The
ongoing severe drought has exacerbated pressures in the already
disrupted foreign exchange (FX) market.

Fitch Ratings, on the other hand, downgraded Argentina's Long-Term
Foreign Currency
Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to 'C' from 'CCC-', and has affirmed
the Long-Term Local Currency IDR at 'CCC-' on March 24, 2023.
Fitch's downgrade of Argentina's rating to 'C' from 'CCC-' follows
an executive decree that forces domestic public-sector entities
into operations involving their holdings of
sovereign debt securities, which would involve unilateral exchanges
and forced currency conversion that constitute default events under
Fitch's criteria. The 'C' rating reflects Fitch's view that
default
is thus imminent. Fitch said the rating would be downgraded to
'Restricted Default' (RD) upon execution of the exchanges.

Moody's Investors Service, in September 2022, affirmed Argentina's
Ca foreign-currency and local-currency long-term issuer and senior
unsecured ratings.  The outlook remains stable.  The decision to
affirm the Ca ratings balances Argentina's limited market access,
weak governance, and history of recurrent debt restructurings with
recent efforts to marshal fiscal and monetary measures to start
addressing underlying macroeconomic imbalances in the context of
the IMF program that was approved in 2022, according to Moody's.

DBRS, Inc. confirmed Argentina's Long-Term Foreign Currency Issuer
Rating at CCC and downgraded its Long-Term Local Currency Issuer
Rating to CCC from CCC (high) on March 3, 2023.

ARGENTINA: Implements Special Exchange Rate to Boost Reserves
-------------------------------------------------------------
Buenos Aires Times reports that Argentina will again introduce a
temporary exchange rate for soybean exports in an elaborate attempt
to shore up dwindling Central Bank reserves and ease economic
damage from a historic drought.

From April 8 to May 31, soybean exporters will be able to ship
their products abroad at 300 pesos to the dollar, Economy Minister
Sergio Massa announced, according to Buenos Aires Times.

The government expects the measure to generate US$9 billion in
exports of soybeans and other agricultural products, the report
notes.  It is the third version of the special exchange rate for
soybeans, but the first that includes other products, the report
relays.

"There are more than 69,000 producers in Argentina with losses"
that are in some cases irreparable, Massa said, the report
discloses.  The measure helps to "incentivise exports and
strengthen reserves," added the minister, the report says.

The measure is another branch to Massa's complex economic strategy
that seeks to cushion the effects of a looming recession as
Argentina's worst drought on record has wreaked havoc on crop
exports, which are essential to the country's growth, the report
discloses.  Economists are forecasting a contraction of three
percent of GDP this year, with inflation exceeding 100 per cent,
the report says.

One of the main priorities of the policy is to bolster the Central
Bank's dwindling net reserves, which stood at US$2.7 billion at the
end of March, according to estimates by Argentine consultancy firm
FmyA, the report says.  In Argentina, exporters must sell the
dollars they receive from their foreign sales to the Central Bank
in exchange for pesos, the report notes.

In theory, a higher exchange rate would encourage exports, the
report discloses.  But some economists warn that dollar purchases
from soybeans will force the Central Bank to print more pesos,
putting more pressure on inflation, the report says.

The temporary exchange rate of 300 to the dollar is far higher than
the current official exchange rate of 211 to the dollar, which the
government controls through a web of currency controls and other
policies. Still, it is much lower than the unofficial parallel
'blue dollar' rate of 409 pesos, the report relays.

While soybean exporters can benefit from the measure until the end
of May, other agricultural exporters, known locally as "regional
economies," will be able to access the rate until the end of
August, the report relays.  The local press dubbed the policy
"dolar Malbec" or "dolar agro" because wine producers, among
others, will benefit from a better rate and Massa trailed the
measure for the first time at a vineyard, the report adds.

                      About Argentina

Argentina is a country located mostly in the southern half of South
America. Its capital is Buenos Aires. Alberto Angel Fernandez is
the current president of Argentina after winning the October 2019
general election. He succeeded Mauricio Macri in the position.

Argentina has the third largest economy in Latin America.  The
country's economy is an upper middle-income economy for fiscal year
2019, according to the World Bank. Historically, however, its
economic performance has been very uneven, with high economic
growth alternating with severe recessions, income maldistribution
and in the recent decades, increasing poverty.

Last March 25, 2022, Argentina finalized agreement with the IMF for
a new USD44 billion Extended Funding Facility (EFF) intended to
fund USD40 billion in looming repayments of the defunct Stand-By
Arrangement (SBA), with an extra USD4 billion in up-front net
financing. This has averted the risk of a default to the IMF
and is facilitating a parallel rescheduling of Paris Club debt.

S&P Global Ratings, on March 29, 2023, lowered its long-term
foreign currency sovereign credit rating on Argentina to 'CCC-'
from 'CCC+'. S&P also affirmed its 'C' short-term foreign currency
sovereign credit rating and its 'CCC-/C' local currency ratings on
Argentina. The outlook on the long-term ratings is negative. S&P
also lowered the transfer and convertibility assessment to 'CCC-'
from 'CCC+'.

The negative outlook on the long-term ratings reflects risks
surrounding pronounced economic imbalances and policy uncertainties
before and after the 2023 national elections. Divisions across the
political spectrum constrain the sovereign's ability to implement
timely changes in economic policy. Global capital markets are
closed to Argentina. In the local market, swaps are being deployed
to manage large maturities before placing debt through traditional
auctions. The central bank continues to play a key role as a
backstop for local debt management in the secondary market. The
ongoing severe drought has exacerbated pressures in the already
disrupted foreign exchange (FX) market.

Fitch Ratings, on the other hand, downgraded Argentina's Long-Term
Foreign Currency
Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to 'C' from 'CCC-', and has affirmed
the Long-Term Local Currency IDR at 'CCC-' on March 24, 2023.
Fitch's downgrade of Argentina's rating to 'C' from 'CCC-' follows
an executive decree that forces domestic public-sector entities
into operations involving their holdings of
sovereign debt securities, which would involve unilateral exchanges
and forced currency conversion that constitute default events under
Fitch's criteria. The 'C' rating reflects Fitch's view that
default
is thus imminent. Fitch said the rating would be downgraded to
'Restricted Default' (RD) upon execution of the exchanges.

Moody's Investors Service, in September 2022, affirmed Argentina's
Ca foreign-currency and local-currency long-term issuer and senior
unsecured ratings.  The outlook remains stable.  The decision to
affirm the Ca ratings balances Argentina's limited market access,
weak governance, and history of recurrent debt restructurings with
recent efforts to marshal fiscal and monetary measures to start
addressing underlying macroeconomic imbalances in the context of
the IMF program that was approved in 2022, according to Moody's.

DBRS, Inc. confirmed Argentina's Long-Term Foreign Currency Issuer
Rating at CCC and downgraded its Long-Term Local Currency Issuer
Rating to CCC from CCC (high) on March 3, 2023.



===========
B R A Z I L
===========

LIGHT SA: Moody's Lowers CFR to Caa3 & Alters Outlook to Negative
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service downgraded the corporate family rating of
Light S.A. (Light) and the issuer ratings and Backed Senior
Unsecured ratings of its operating subsidiaries Light Serviços de
Eletricidade S.A. (Light SESA) and Light Energia S.A. (Light
Energia) to Caa3 from B3. The outlook on all ratings was changed to
negative. This action concludes the review for downgrade initiated
on February 3, 2023.

Downgrades:

Issuer: Light S.A.

Corporate Family Rating, Downgraded to Caa3 from B3

Issuer: Light Servicos De Eletricidade S.A.

Issuer Rating, Downgraded to Caa3 from B3

Backed Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Downgraded to Caa3
from B3

Issuer: Light Energia S.A.

Issuer Rating, Downgraded to Caa3 from B3

Backed Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Downgraded to Caa3
from B3

Outlook Actions:

Issuer: Light S.A.

Outlook, Changed To Negative From Rating Under Review

Issuer: Light Servicos De Eletricidade S.A.

Outlook, Changed To Negative From Rating Under Review

Issuer: Light Energia S.A.

Outlook, Changed To Negative From Rating Under Review

RATINGS RATIONALE

The downgrade of Light's ratings to Caa3 follows the management
announcement that they intend to seek negotiations with creditors
to agree on a standstill period for its upcoming debt obligations
with the purpose of retaining cash for the company's operating
needs, making the maintenance of the concession's quality and
services a high priority. This announcement was provided along with
the release of 2022 fiscal year-end results, showing further
deterioration in the company's liquidity position amid high
interest rates and challenging refinancing conditions. The Caa3
rating implies high likelihood of default with an average recovery
rate for debtholders between 65% and 80%.

The negative outlook on the company's ratings reflect uncertainties
around the expected losses for debtholders, that could potentially
deteriorate depending on the financial strategy adopted by the
company.

As of December 2022, the company had a cash position of BRL2,039
million, or BRL1,908 million adjusting for the debentures
pre-payment. The liquidity is tight in face of the continuous capex
requirements to maintain the quality of the concession and the
company's scheduled debt services of BRL 1,198 million in 2023 and
BRL2,651 million in 2024.  Without any external cash injections,
Moody's estimates the cash position could fuel the company's
obligations only through September 2023. Using the unencumbered
receivables to raise further financing has not longer been listed
by the company as one of the possible actions to be taken.

A standstill for debt service beyond the contractual grace periods
would be deemed a payment default under Moody's definition of
default. Moody's is likely to view forced renegotiations as
distressed exchanges and therefore as default events when 1) an
issuer offers creditors a new or restructured debt, or a new
package of securities, cash or assets, that amount to a diminished
value relative to the debt obligation's original promise and 2) the
exchange has the effect of allowing the issuer to avoid a likely
eventual default. While the law prevents Light SESA from filing for
court protection for judicial recovery (Chapter 11), the company
may seek bilateral negotiations with groups of creditors,
prioritizing those with maturities in the short term. However, all
the group's indebtedness have cross-acceleration clauses increasing
the risk of default also to holders of long-term debt. The legal
recognition by at least one debtholder of the renegotiation as an
event of default could lead to an early maturity of all the
company's debts.

On March 28, 2023, the company prepaid the third issuance of Light
Energia's debentures and the eight issuance of Light SESA's
debentures for a total of BRL175.5 million. The objective of the
pre-payment was to avoid cross-acceleration with other
indebtedness, as the debentures had clauses requiring the company
to maintain a local-scale investment grade rating with which the
company could no longer comply. The payment provided an exit
strategy at par value and a waiver fee for FI-FGTS, the sole holder
of the debentures. Moody's considers it further deteriorated the
prospects of recovery for other debtholders draining the company's
cash position.

The renewal of Light SESA's concession contract remains a key
credit consideration because higher visibility into the economic
terms and conditions of the concession would support an improvement
in investor confidence with a long term view on the company's
future cash flows to sustainably cover operating, investment and
debt service needs. Key directors from ANEEL, the regulatory
authority, have made encouraging public statements in favor of
recognizing the complexity of the operating area and allowing for
higher rates of return for the company. Nonetheless, Moody's deem
likely that the company will breach the covenant for capitalization
of in the concession agreement in 2022. If the covenant is violated
for two years in a row, the company could lose the concession.

Governance factors are highly relevant to this rating action, and
reflects Light's highly aggressive financial strategy and
management practices. Moody's considers that governance risks are
highly negative (G-5 issuer profile score) and have a highly
negative impact on the current rating level (CIS-5), reflecting the
company's lack of commitment to maintain its credit profile and
preserve debtholders' interests.

The ratings assigned to Light SESA and Light Energia are in line
with the ratings assigned to its parent company, due to the
corporate guarantee provided by Light and the cross-default clauses
embedded in the debt issued within the group. Because of these
financial and structural linkages, Light SESA and Light Energia's
credit profile are best assessed through Light's consolidated
profile, as the holding company of the group.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS

Ratings downgrade could result from the Moody's perception of a
lower recovery rate than 65% for debtholders.

A ratings upgrade is unlikely at this time given Moody's view of
imminent default. However, upwards pressures on the ratings could
arise if the issuers continues to make timely payments on its debt
obligations and provides higher visibility into Light's financial
plans to improve its debt amortization profile at reasonable costs,
along with a clearer view on the progress towards Light SESA's
concession renewal.

COMPANY PROFILE

Headquartered in Rio de Janeiro - Brazil, Light is an integrated
utility company with activities in generation, distribution and
commercialization of electricity. Light SESA and Light Energia are
wholly owned subsidiaries of Light. As of December 2022, Light
reported consolidated net debt of BRL10.2 billion, according to
Moody's standard adjustments.

The principal methodology used in rating Light S.A., and Light
Servicos De Eletricidade S.A. was Regulated Electric and Gas
Utilities published in June 2017.

PILGRIM'S PRIDE: Moody's Rates New $500MM Unsecured Notes 'Ba3'
---------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service assigned a Ba3 rating to Pilgrim's Pride
Corporation's proposed $500 million 10-year senior unsecured
notes.

Other ratings, including Pilgrim's Ba2 Corporate Family Rating, and
the Ba1 ratings on Pilgrim's senior secured revolving credit
facility due August 2026 and senior secured term loan due August
2026 are not affected. The company's Speculative Grade Liquidity
Rating remains SGL-1 and the outlook remains stable.

Proceeds from the proposed $500 million of senior unsecured notes
will be used to repay the remaining balance (approximately $480
million) of the company's senior secured term loan due August
2026.

Upon repayment of the senior secured term loan, Moody's plans to
withdraw its rating.

The refinancing is credit positive because it will extend the
maturity profile of the company and meaningfully reduce the amount
of secured debt in the capital structure. The $800 million senior
secured revolver expiring in August 2026 will be the only
substantive secured debt instrument in the capital structure.
Reducing the amount of secured debt increases financial flexibility
because the actions provides greater future capacity to utilize
assets to raise funds in the future if needed to support investment
and liquidity.  The increase in cash interest expense is manageable
within the company's projected free cash flow and does not outweigh
these benefits.

The Ba1 revolver rating is not affected and continues to reflect a
one notch downward override to the Baa3 implied outcome based on
the loss given default model because Moody's believes the model
outcome adequately reflects expected recovery in the event of a
default.

Moody's took the following rating actions:

Assignments:

Issuer: Pilgrim's Pride Corporation

Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Assigned Ba3 (LGD4)

RATINGS RATIONALE

Pilgrim's Ba2 CFR is supported by its position among the world's
largest chicken processors, moderate financial leverage, very good
liquidity and, excluding exogenous disruptions, relatively stable
free cash flow. This reflects an operating strategy focused on
maximizing profitability and earnings stability through maintaining
efficient operations, improving product mix and leveraging customer
relationships. These focused efforts allow the company to at least
partially offset sector headwinds caused by external factors such
as biological risks, trade restrictions and government policies
that are largely out of its control. These strengths are balanced
against the company's focus in the cyclical chicken processing
industry, which is characterized by volatile earnings and modest
profit margins. The inherent earnings and cash flow volatility in
the sector requires very good liquidity to manage through weak
earnings periods. At the top of the cycle, Moody's expects
financial leverage to be very modest relative to comparably rated
companies. Conversely, at the bottom of the cycle, the company can
often have financial leverage that is well outside Moody's central
expectations for the rating for a limited period of time. The
financial policy of maintaining abundant access to cash and
external sources of liquidity helps the company manage through the
earnings volatility. Moody's evaluates Pilgrim's credit profile on
a stand-alone basis because the debt is not guaranteed by its
80%-shareholder JBS S.A. (JBS; Baa3 stable). Thus, the ratings are
not directly affected by the credit profile of JBS. However, the
strategic importance of Pilgrim's to JBS, as it provides protein
and geographic diversification, and potentially earnings stability,
is a positive credit factor because Pilgrim's does not pay a
dividend, at least a portion of earnings are being reinvested in
Pilgrim's growth and there is likely incentive for JBS to support
Pilgrim's through temporary cyclical slowdowns if necessary.

Pilgrim's Pride's ESG Credit Impact score is moderately negative
(CIS-3), reflecting its moderately negative governance risk and a
conservative financial policy that helps to partially mitigate its
highly negative exposure to environmental and social risks. The
main environmental risks for Pilgrim's Pride stem from its
significant reliance on water and natural capital in order to
produce chickens. Pilgrim Pride's social risk is driven mainly by
responsible production, as its poultry must adhere to food safety
and quality measures in order to prevent recalls or contamination.
The company's conservative financial policies and very good
liquidity provide financial flexibility to manage the environmental
and social risks.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATING

The stable outlook reflects a fairly wide range of potential
earnings performance that is typical in the cyclical U.S. chicken
processing industry balanced against Pilgrim's very good
liquidity.

Moody's nevertheless expects in the stable outlook that Pilgrim's
debt to EBITDA will be sustained in a range of 2.0x to 2.5x during
the next 12 to 18 months and that the company will maintain its
very good liquidity.

Pilgrim's ratings are constrained by the company's concentration in
chicken. However, the ratings could be upgraded if the company
enhances earnings stability through improvements in business and
product mix, debt to EBITDA is sustained below 2.0x, there is
continued improvement in the EBITDA margin, the company generates
consistent and comfortably positive free cash flow, and liquidity
sources (cash plus unused revolver commitment availability) are
maintained consistently above $1 billion.

The ratings could be downgraded if debt/EBITDA is sustained above
2.5x. Other events that could contribute to a downgrade include a
major leveraged acquisition or share buyback, deteriorating
industry conditions that lead to prolonged negative free cash flow,
or deteriorating liquidity such as cash plus unused revolver
commitment below $750 million. The ratings could also be downgraded
if legal, governance or other challenges at related entities,
including JBS S.A., negatively affect the risk profile of
Pilgrim's.

The principal methodology used in this rating was Protein and
Agriculture published in November 2021.

Headquartered in Greeley, Colorado, Pilgrim's Pride Corporation
(NASDAQ: PPC) is the second largest chicken processor in the world,
with operations in the United States, U.K., European Union, Mexico
and Puerto Rico. The company produces, processes, markets and
distributes fresh, frozen and value-added chicken products to
foodservice customers, distributors and retail operators worldwide.
Pilgrim's also is a leading integrated prepared pork supplier in
Europe.

For the last twelve-month period ended December 25, 2022, Pilgrim's
revenues totaled $17.5 billion. Pilgrim's Pride is controlled by
Sao Paulo, Brazil based JBS S.A. (Baa3 stable), the largest
processor of animal protein in the world. As of December 25, 2022,
JBS S.A. owns in excess of 80% of the outstanding common stock of
Pilgrim's.



===================================
D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C
===================================

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Reduces Growth Forecast for 2023 to 4.25%
-------------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that the gross domestic product (GDP) of
the Dominican Republic will grow by 4.25% at the end of this year,
that is, 0.25% less than estimated last November, the Ministry of
Economy, Planning and Development informed.

In a press release, the ministry said that growth projections had
been revised downwards for 2023 due to a less favorable
international environment, given the tightening of financial
conditions at the global level, according to Dominican Today.
However, it highlighted an expansion in real terms of the GDP of
4.25%, the report relays.

An improvement in the performance of the Dominican economy is
expected for next year, with a natural GDP expansion of 5.0%, the
report notes.

The economic outlook "continues to be conditioned by the level of
uncertainty that currently dominates global markets, as a result of
the hardening of financial conditions and the economic slowdown of
our main trading partners," states the report Macroeconomic Outlook
2023-2027, according to a note from the Ministry of Economy, the
report says.

According to the information, adopting a restrictive monetary
policy, the subsidies granted by the Dominican Government to
mitigate the increase in fuel prices, and the extension of the
temporary suspension of the adjustments to the electricity tariff
have contributed to the slowdown in inflation, the report
discloses.

Inflation is expected to converge to the target range of 4% ± 1%
during 2023, with an expected year-end price growth of 4.5% and an
average of 5.5%, the report says.

The authorities also project an average exchange rate of 56.79
pesos per dollar, a reduction of 0.41 cents concerning last
November's forecast, and a depreciation rate of 3.0% concerning the
2022 average, the report adds.

                   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. Luis Rodolfo
Abinader Corona is the current president of the nation.

TCRLA reported in April 2019 that the Dominican To 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.

Fitch Ratings, in December 2021, revised the Outlook on Dominican
Republic's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR)
to Stable from Negative and affirmed the IDRs at 'BB-'.The
revision of the Outlook to Stable reflects the narrowing of
Dominican Republic's government deficit and financing needs since
Fitch's last review resulting in the stabilization of the
government debt/GDP ratio, as well as the investment-driven
economic momentum, reflected in the faster-than-expected economic
recovery in 2021 that Fitch expects to carry into above-potential
GDP growth during 2022 and 2023.

Standard & Poor's, also in December 2021, revised its outlook on
the Dominican Republic to stable from negative.S&P also
affirmed its 'BB-' long-term foreign and local currency sovereign
credit ratings and its 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings. The
stable outlook reflects S&P's expectation of continued favorable
GDP growth and policy continuity over the next 12 to 18 months that
will likely stabilize the government's debt burden, despite lack of
progress with broader tax reforms, S&P said.A rapid economic
recovery from the downturn because of the pandemic should mitigate
external and fiscal risks.

Moody's affirmed the Dominican Republic's long-term issuer and
senior unsecured ratings at Ba3 and maintained the stable outlook
in March 2021.



=============
J A M A I C A
=============

JAMAICA: BoJ Injects US$30M into the FX Market
----------------------------------------------
RJR News reports that the Bank of Jamaica has intervened in the
foreign currency market for the eighth time since the start of the
year.

The BOJ pumped US$30 million into the market, according to RJR
News.

Eight banks and five cambios were successful in their bids, the
report notes.

Scotiabank, JN Bank, and Grace Kennedy Currency Trading Services
received the largest shares of the funds auctioned, the report
adds.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America in March
2022, Fitch Ratings has affirmed Jamaica's Long-Term Foreign
Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at 'B+'. The Rating Outlook is
Stable.



===============
X X X X X X X X
===============

CARIBBEAN: Visitor Arrivals Behind by 1% Compared to 2019
---------------------------------------------------------
RJR News reports that the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association
(CHTA) said international arrivals to the Caribbean for the first
two months this year are behind by only one per cent when compared
to the same period in 2019.

CHTA said in contrast, Europe is registering a 25 per cent lag,
while Asia-Pacific is 54 per cent behind, according to RJR News.
Total international inbound is trailing by 31 per cent compared to
the same period in 2019, the report notes.

The regional hotel group is applauding Caribbean tourism
stakeholders for their exceptional efforts in leading the global
travel rebound this year, noting in particular the strides made by
the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) and Curacao, the report
relays.

"These are impressive results for our region," said CHTA President
Nicola Madden-Greig, noting also the close collaboration and smart
partnerships between health organizations, hospitality leaders,
businesses, governments, the Barbados-based Caribbean Tourism
Organization (CTO), airlines, and other stakeholders for the
"strong recovery," the report discloses.

According to ticket booking data for arrivals through the end of
March, the USVI has recorded an increase of more than 22 per cent
compared to the same period in 2019, leading the region, the report
adds.



                           *********


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 2023.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2746.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic
re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without prior
written permission of the publishers.

Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to
be reliable, but is not guaranteed.

The TCR Latin America subscription rate is US$775 per half-year,
delivered via e-mail.  Additional e-mail subscriptions for members
of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription or
balance thereof are US$25 each.  For subscription information,
contact Peter A. Chapman at 215-945-7000.
.


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