By

The “line in the sand” fiscal rule has now gone but due to the measures taken there is the hope that the deficit will drop from the anticipated 8.6% in 2021 to 2.7% in 2026.

Here is hoping that Bogota Metro or Cali Freeway will one day be names we might all buy and sell in the market.

We have seen a slight rebound over recent sessions as the peso recovers from the perfect storm of a lost investment grade, a wobbly oil price and forthcoming elections. Another major factor for the peso will be exports and there was good news on that front for July.

Reportedly 100 new ideas have been added to Colombia's second attempt at tax reform this year, and four original provisions have already been axed.

On a more optimistic note, the MSCI COLCAP finally appears to be gaining a foothold in 2021, we are no longer bottom of the pile and for foreigners in particular, there are bargains to be had.

Here in Colombia the market has been crying out for new blood, we have seen multiple names such as Tablemac delist, others including Éxito who are no longer part of the MSCI COLCAP and recently Avianca which has been put on the naughty step due to Chapter 11.

All three agencies said publicly many months ago that they were looking for the tax reform to right the fiscal ship which has been listing badly ever since COVID struck - to put it bluntly, the authorities have failed to deliver - and it is on them.

Monday saw the latest surveys released by Fedesarrollo - the Financial Opinion Survey (FOS) & Stock Market Confidence Indices (SMCI) - for the month of June. The overall confidence number stands at 96.97% which is up 5.1% from May - breaking that down we see other improvements.

Tuesday was a historic day in Colombia - not because the football team managed to snatch a 2-2 draw against Argentina in a World Cup qualifier, but because it represented the first time ever that local investors could buy and sell Chilean stocks in local currency.

This past week most headlines have been so contaminated with politics it has been hard to find much else to discuss. Everyone who ever picked up a banner and marched in Colombia is a descendant of Vladimir Lenin and anyone who ever owned a business has modeled it on the Victorian...