Colombia 's external debt totaled US$252.493 million at the end of March, equivalent to 52.7% of GDP, according to data released by the Banco de la República.
The indicator recorded a reduction of more than US$1.433.8 million compared to February, when it reached US$253.927 million. Of the March total, US$218.244 million corresponded to long-term debt securities issued in the local market and US$34.249 million to short-term securities. The Banco de la República detailed that US$156.882 million are public sector receivables and US$95.612 million are private. The reduction was explained mainly by a drop of US$1.198 million in public sector debt, associated with the cancellation of a Total Return Swap. Regarding interest payments, these totaled US$1.036 million in March, of which US$684 million corresponded to the public sector. The currency balance showed US$75.398 million in dollars, US$49.221 million in Colombian pesos and US$13.427 million in euros.
