Outlooks On Two Colombian Infrastructure Entities Revised To Negative On Similar Sovereign Action; Ratings Affirmed

On Jan. 18, 2024, we revised the outlook on our foreign and local currency ratings on Colombia to negative from stable and affirmed our 'BB+/B' foreign currency and 'BBB-/A-3' local currency ratings. Our 'BBB' transfer and convertibility assessment on the country remains unchanged. The negative outlook on Colombia reflects potentially weak investor confidence that could weigh on private investment and pose risks for GDP growth returning to its trend rate of just above 3% in the next couple of years. As a result, we're revising the outlooks on Colombia-based Isagen S.A. E.S.P. and Oleoducto Central, S.A. (OCENSA) to negative from stable. At the same time, we affirming our 'BB+' ratings on these infrastructure entities. We have assigned a new management

...The negative outlook on Isagen and OCENSA mirrors that on Colombia, which in turn reflects that potentially persistent weak investor confidence, denting private-sector investment, may prevent GDP growth from returning to its trend rate of just above 3% in the next couple of years. Low economic growth may indicate weaker economic resilience and could, absent corrective measures, contribute to fiscal slippage or higher external vulnerabilities....

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