The Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) have initiated assessments on the proposed construction of a new port in the district of Aguadulce.
These assessments began with a visit last Saturday by staff from the Planning Department and Pre-Investment Fund to the area of La Caleta, along El Salado beach; a prospective site for the work.
The [...]

Five additional tanks to store crude oil will be built by Petroterminal de Panamá (PTP) as part of a pipeline expansion project, which implies an investment of $480 million.
Two tanks will be erected on the Atlantic side, with a capacity of 631,000 barrels, 80.79 meters in diameter, and 20.47 meters high; and three tanks are [...]

By SANTIAGO Fascetto for La Prensa – The former Comptroller Alvin Weeden said yesterday that the company Ports Engineering and Consultants Ltd. (ECCP) was created to “steal tax money” from the State. He accused, by first and last name, those politicians who benefited with the money generated by the company: Hugo Torrijos, Rubén Reyna and [...]

By Eric Sabo – Nov. 13 (Bloomberg) — Panama may sell as much as $500 million of bonds to finance construction of a subway and other infrastructure projects, Finance Minister Alberto Vallarino said. “We have enough money for the budget now,” Vallarino said in an interview today in Panama City. “But if the timing is [...]

Prior to being elected president, Ricardo Martinelli rated the propaganda of Martín Torrijos’ government as “expensive, personalistic” and seeking reelection. Since taking office this past July 1, Martinelli’s administration has spent $2.1 million on publicity. This figure would be enough to build 27 schools with basic infrastructure.
“The government has obtained a net or [...]

The investment portfolio of banks in the local market amounted to $2.5 billion as of the end of August this year, representing a 25 percent decline as compared with the same period in 2008.
This, according to information collected by the Superintendency of Banks.
The private equity portfolio, previously at $2.3 billion in 2008, fell by 48 [...]

One would think that with fewer ships being used worldwide the demand for repairs of those in operation would be higher, but as this story points out, ship owners just don’t have the money to repair their vessels.
WILFREDO S. JORDAN
wjordan@prensa.com wjordan@prensa.com
Shipbuilding is an important link in the development of any economic activity linked to the [...]

PANAMA CITY — U.S. Rep. Allen Boyd has filed legislation that, if passed, would hinder the ability of the Food and Drug Administration to implement a recently floated ban on Oysters during summer months.“Through my seat on the House Appropriations Committee, I will be working at every juncture to get more answers and to block [...]

By Jessica Tasón for La Critica – Panama’s Deputy Foreign Trade Minister, Jose Domingo Arias, said they expect the total amount of Foreign Direct Investment in the country will top $1 billion dollars by the end of 2009. Figures from the Comptroller General’s Office revealed that during the first half of the year, foreign direct [...]

The Seafood Market will be closed today, Monday, Nov. 9 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. in order to carry out a thorough clean-up and fumigation process.
The Mayor’s Office of Panama reported that the cleaning program aims to eradicate all forms of insects and bacteria that can contaminate marine products for sale to the public.
In [...]

By Cynthia Sanchez for the Panama America – The business sector is optimistic that the Panamanian economy is likely to increase between 5% and 6% in 2010 compared to 2009, which will reach only 3% growth due mostly to the international financial crisis that affected Panama. The president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry [...]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – South Korean, Colombian and Panamanian officials said on Wednesday they hoped for U.S congressional approval of pending free trade agreements by the middle of 2010.
South Korean Ambassador Han Duk-soo said he saw “a short window of opportunity” for Congress to approve the U.S.-South Korea free trade deal by June.
Otherwise, action on the two-year-old [...]

Livestock prices have fallen recently as farmers are reluctant to make purchases because of uncertainties surrounding the weather and the continuance of government subsidies.
In the months of September and October, the price of a cow at auction has fallen to 44 cents a pound, a 6-cent decrease, as compared to the same period last [...]

Panama’s ambassador to the U.S., Jaime Alemán Healy, met with senior Indiana Republican Sen. Richard Lugar to discuss the importance of the U.S. Congress ratifying a trade agreement between the two countries.
The meeting, held two days ago, is one of many efforts the Panamanian diplomat has made to create a favorable environment for the treaty.
Healy, [...]

English Chosun reported that the Korea Resources Corporation has joined hands with Korean mining company LS Nikko Copper to invest KRW 1 trillion in 5 year projects to develop a major copper mine in Panama.
KORES said that it signed a contract with Inmet Mining Corporation of Canada for an option to acquire 20 % stake [...]

The National Union of Small and Medium Enterprises has estimated that sales of its members have declined between 15 percent and 20 percent so far this year as compared to the same period last year, which has put many firms in a cash crunch.
One of these is Barrios, a shoe manufacturer, who has been hit [...]

The public debt increased by $132 million between September 2008 and last month, according to figures from the government.
That was a 1.2 percent increase as the debt went from $10.9 billion to $11.1 billion. The increase in the debt balance is attributable to more than $1 billion in payments the government received from institutions such as the [...]

The European Investment Bank (EIB) granted, on 27 October, a loan of US$211 million to two subsidiaries of the Gaz de France-Suez Group holding the concession in Panama for the Dos Mares project.
The loan will help finance the construction and operation of the Guanaca, Lorena and Prudencia hydropower plants on the Chiriquí River in Western [...]

On the shelves of Panamanian supermarkets, cheap bread is hard to find.
A research study conducted in major supermarkets in the metropolitan area by national consumer protection authority Acodec, revealed that as of June this year, 36 varieties of bread rose in price, many pointing to a rise in raw materials as the culprit.
The poll also [...]

The most immediate challenge facing Banco Nacional de Panama Manager Darío Berbey is changing the institution’s technology platform, parts of which date back more than 30 years.
The process has already started with the changing of the hardware, which has increased the speed of transactions.
The bank not only serves its customer base, but also has other [...]