General Information

The Republic of Panama is an independent sovereign state which is located between Costa Rica and Colombia and occupies the narrowest and lowest part of the isthmus that links North and South America. Panama is famous for its canal which joins the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Because of the importance of the Canal, the country has good air and sea links, especially those with the United States, and excellent telecommunications.

Total area is about 76,900 sq km, population is approximately 2.4 million. The official and spoken language is Spanish. English is also widely spoken in urban areas and is used daily in commerce and international trade. Panama has excellent corporate efficiency, it has maintained it, although it has suffered from political instability in recent years.

Political Structure

Until 1821 Panama was a Spanish colony. The alliance with Colombia was broken in 1903, after that Panama became an independent republic. The executive Government branch is at present composed of a President and two vice-presidents, which are elected directly for a five-year period.

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19/11/2007
Recently, a new law was passed by Panama's National Assembly to give multinational companies that perform certain tasks a significant tax break. As a result, according to a company specialising in investment property in Panama, the country's real estate sector is expected to experience an unprecedented boost.
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19/09/2007
The WTO has announced completing a Trade Policy Review of Panama and published the results of the review. The report suggested that the rationalization of assistance programmes and the simplification of the trade regime would help Panama to sustain the economic growth.
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22/08/2007
Economic growth in Panama is expected to exceed last year's 8.1% because of a strong investment climate, a dynamic services sector and the Panama Canal expansion programme.
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03/07/2007
The Trade Promotion Agreement has been signed by Panama and the United States to eliminate tariffs and other barriers to the trade in goods and services between Panama and the US.
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21/03/2007
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) held a public hearing in Balboa, Panama, with the participation of fourteen representatives from shipping and government.
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11/01/2007
Panama banks Banco General and Banco Continental have come to the agreement to merge. This merger will create one of the largest financial services companies in the region. The merger is expected to close during 2007.
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07/11/2006
Panama hopes to become Argentina's replacement on the UN Security Council after Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) of the UN Security Council delayed as far as some English-speaking Caribbean members were reportedly upset about not being adequately involved in this process.
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08/09/2006
At a meeting of Panama's President and Executive President of the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) agreed that by the end of 2006 Panama will become an 'extra-regional' partner of CABEI. This status will provide Panama with the access of funding of about USD 60 million.
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28/06/2006
Chile and Panama signed the free trade agreement that opens up 92.5% of the Chilean economy to Panamanian producers. Now most Panamanian products will enjoy a zero tariff when entering Chile's market.
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