Glancing over last week’s headlines, one might think there’s been some sort of significant improvement in the outlook for Puerto Rico’s beleaguered economy. With bond prices trading at their highest levels since the hurricanes, the Wall Street Journal referred to Puerto Rico’s debt as “the top-performing bond investment of 2018,” a development it attributes to “unexpected improvement in the island’s economy.”

This statement is deceptive at best. If anything, Puerto Rico’s economic prospects have only worsened.

The surge in bond prices comes in response to a new version of the proposed “Fiscal Plan,” released by Puerto Rico’s government, which predicts a much higher fiscal surplus over the next six years than a previous version, released in February. Creditors are assuming they will be able to claim these funds for debt repayment, which pushed bond prices up. However, the newest plan downgrades growth predictions, prompting the question of where this new surplus is supposed to come from.