The external debt of the private sector as of March 31, 2006 totaled US$ 47,523
million, corresponding to US$ 42,615 million (90%) to liabilities declared by the
non-financial private sector (NFPS) and US$ 4,907 million (10%) by the private financial sector
(SPF).
Foreign obligations remained practically at the same
levels as at the end of 2005, since the observed decrease was only US$ 68
million, constituting the smallest quarterly net fall recorded since the
beginning of the series.
Net changes in external obligations were small in both
NFPS and the financial sector. The increase in the SPF, although not
significant (US$ 15 million), constitutes the first quarterly increase in the external debt of the
financial sector since the beginning of the series.
Trade NFPS debts had inverse movements: obligations
associated with the financing of exports of goods fell by
US$ 396 million, while liabilities for imports of goods and
services increased by US$ 369 million and US$ 59 million, respectively. The
decrease in debt from advances and pre-financing was mainly
associated with the net cancellation of external lines in the oilseeds and
cereals sector, and the process of substitution by local financing.
The fresh financial funds received by the NFPS in the period
under review amounted to US$ 380 million, of which US$ 136 million
corresponded to disbursements from parent companies and/or subsidiaries.
The main variations in the external debt of the SPF corresponded to
new placements of debt securities for US$ 100 million and net payments of
loans and financial lines and correspondent balances for US$ 17 million,
US$ 78 million, and US$ 29 million, respectively.
The average remaining life of external obligations as of 31.03.06 stood
at around 2.1 years without significant changes compared to the previous quarter.
The average life of NFPS debt was again 2.0 years,
while SPF debt remained around 3.7 years.
