Colombia in the Eyes of Wall Street, Global Slowdown: Impact on Latin America

Keynote Speakers:

• Francisco Santos Calderón, Vice President (Read his remarks)
• Oscar Iván Zuluaga, Minister of Finance (View his presentation)
• Luis Guillermo Plata, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism (View his presentation)
• José Darío Uribe, General Manager, Banco de la República
• Armando Zamora, Director, Agencia Nacional de Hidrocarburos
• Mauricio Cárdenas, Director, Fedesarrollo
• Sergio Clavijo, President, ANIF

Welcoming Remarks

• Susan Segal, President and CEO, Americas Society/Council of the Americas (Read her remarks)

Conference Panelists:

• Alberto Bernal, Head of Fixed Income Research, Bulltick Capital Partners (View his presentation)
• Peter Grossich, Partner, ND Capital Partners
• Felipe IIlanes, Chief Latin American Economist, Merrill Lynch
• Gerardo León, Director, Tribeca Partners S.A. (View his presentation)
• Hernán Lopez, Director Latin America, Nasdaq Omx (View his presentation)
• Fergus J. McCormick, Senior Vice President, Sovereigns, DBRS (View his presentation)
• Peter Vonk, Vice President, Coporate Finance and Investment Banking, Corporación Andina de Fomento (Moderator)

Summary

The Americas Society and Council of the Americas hosted their 12th Bogotá Conference, “Colombia in the Eyes of Wall Street, Global Slowdown: Impact on Latin America” on June 18, 2008. The conference, co-organized with ANIF and Fedesarrollo, examined Colombia’s growth prospects in today’s challenging global environment. Speakers and panelists—who included government ministers, Wall Street analysts, and senior-level executives—assessed Colombia's macroeconomic outlook and investment climate. Furthermore, speakers evaluated the country’s capital market development; prospects for the private equity industry; and Colombia’s energy, investment and monetary policies. The conference allowed speakers to highlight the importance of sustaining Colombia’s positive economic growth through solid macroeconomic policies, prudent management of fiscal debt, institutional reforms, and improvement of public security. However, most panelists expressed concern about the inflationary and appreciation pressures that could hinder the country’s development prospects.

Remarks by Vice President Santos

During his keynote speech, Vice President Francisco Santos highlighted the country’s remarkable economic and social progress under the government of President Álvaro Uribe. In particular, Santos lauded the government’s ability to regain the public trust in Colombia, reflected in the country’s economic growth rate as well as local and foreign investment levels. As Santos noted, upholding the country’s development depends not only on maintaining the economic conditions for overall stability, but also in achieving the goals of the Democratic Security Policy, which ensures the free exercise of rights for everyone in Colombia. 

Colombia in the Eyes of Wall Street

The opening panel addressed the impact of the global slowdown on the Colombian economy. In their presentations, analysts from Merrill Lynch, Bulltick, and DBRS explained that foreign investors have seen a favorable transformation of Colombia’s economy in recent years, reflected in greater investment and economic growth. Minister Luis Guillermo Plata expressed concern about achieving investment grade and described the possibility as a “sour victory” due to its effects on the exchange rate. Moreover, speakers highlighted the challenges facing the Colombian economy in sustaining the country’s growth rate: controlling inflation, improving income distribution, reducing the informal sector (which currently accounts for 56.5 percent of the economy), improving fiscal expenditure efficiency, and building a stronger balance of payments.

Capital Markets and the Development of Private Equity

Speakers emphasized the importance of developing private equity in Colombia. Hernán Lopez of Nasdaq Omx discussed the company’s role as an exchange company leader as it continues to expand in Latin America to become one of the most sought-after listing venues. Tribeca Partner’s Gerardo León noted that it was necessary to invest in private equity in order to increase market investment, diversify those investments, and obtain higher long term returns.