MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Ecuador the riskiest Latinamerican country

Ecuador became this week the riskiest country in Latinamerica according to JP Morgan Emerging Markets Bond Index, EMBI, with a 799 basic points rating.

Doubts about Ecuador's sustainability of future foreign debt payments plus the recent Argentine rescheduling process have surged the risk country factor, which measures the difference between a sovereign bond risk and US Treasury bonds.

Ecuador's risk rate has been gradually increasing after having reached 600 points last March when the political dispute over the Judicial branch, which ended with the ousting by Parliament of Ecuadorian president Lucio Gutierrez.

Ecuador which has had recurring political problems and financial problems adopted the US dollar as the local currency in 2000, but apparently to no avail since government finances continue in the red.

Other comparative risk ratings in Latinamerica: Colombia 329 basic points; Mexico 169 and Brazil 400.