Ivory Coast Bonds Advance to 4-Month High as Gbagbo Mulls Leaving Country
By - Apr 6, 2011 7:18 PM GMT+0700
Ivory Coast’s defaulted dollar bonds rose to a four-month high as Laurent Gbagbo said he may leave the country after troops loyal to internationally recognized president-elect Alassane Ouattara surrounded his residence.
The West African nation’s 2032 bonds issued a year ago jumped 7.7 percent to 55.438 cents on the dollar, the highest since Dec. 2, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The debt has rallied 14 percent in the past two days after Gbagbo troops surrendered. Fighting was reported around his residence today.
The incumbent, whose refusal to accept the results of the country’s Nov. 28 elections led to war, may leave Ivory Coast, he said in an interview conducted last night and broadcast today on LCI, a Paris-based TV news channel. No political agreement has been reached with Ouattara, he said.
“Gbagbo’s exit looms, and I would say it’s now a matter of hours or at most a couple of days,” Anne Fruhauf, Africa analyst for Eurasia Group in London, said in a telephone interview. His departure would not immediately restore order in Abidjan, the commercial hub, which is a city “awash with arms, militias, a panicked civilian population and rebel forces that really need to exercise restraint,” she said.
The UN put the death toll from post-election violence at 494 before the fight for Abidjan began. At least 800 more were also killed in the western town of Duekoue, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Gbagbo began negotiating an exit after French and United Nations forces destroyed most of his army’s heavy weapons.
The United Nations, the U.S., the African Union and the European Union recognize Ouattara, 69, a former deputy managing director at the International Monetary Fund, as the winner of the Nov. 28 election. Gbagbo, 65, refuses to step down, alleging voter fraud.
To contact the reporter on this story: Jason Webb in London at jwebb25@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Gavin Serkin at gserkin@bloomberg.net
The West African nation’s 2032 bonds issued a year ago jumped 7.7 percent to 55.438 cents on the dollar, the highest since Dec. 2, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The debt has rallied 14 percent in the past two days after Gbagbo troops surrendered. Fighting was reported around his residence today.
The incumbent, whose refusal to accept the results of the country’s Nov. 28 elections led to war, may leave Ivory Coast, he said in an interview conducted last night and broadcast today on LCI, a Paris-based TV news channel. No political agreement has been reached with Ouattara, he said.
“Gbagbo’s exit looms, and I would say it’s now a matter of hours or at most a couple of days,” Anne Fruhauf, Africa analyst for Eurasia Group in London, said in a telephone interview. His departure would not immediately restore order in Abidjan, the commercial hub, which is a city “awash with arms, militias, a panicked civilian population and rebel forces that really need to exercise restraint,” she said.
Default
The country’s $2.3 billion of bonds have lost 9 percent of their value since April, after falling as much as 43 percent to 35 cents on March 16. The country was declared in default after missing a $29 million interest payment due the end of January as Gbagbo and Ouattara were locked in a political standoff.The UN put the death toll from post-election violence at 494 before the fight for Abidjan began. At least 800 more were also killed in the western town of Duekoue, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Gbagbo began negotiating an exit after French and United Nations forces destroyed most of his army’s heavy weapons.
The United Nations, the U.S., the African Union and the European Union recognize Ouattara, 69, a former deputy managing director at the International Monetary Fund, as the winner of the Nov. 28 election. Gbagbo, 65, refuses to step down, alleging voter fraud.
To contact the reporter on this story: Jason Webb in London at jwebb25@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Gavin Serkin at gserkin@bloomberg.net
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