EVER since Panama founded its offshore banking centre in the 1970s, its governments have vowed to resist international demands for information about assets held by foreign citizens in the country. Until the global financial crisis struck in 2008, Panama faced little pressure to cough up such data, because other jurisdictions like the Cayman Islands were more popular with tax cheats. Once the OECD began cracking down on offshore tax evasion, however, and convinced many of the biggest havens to clean up their acts, Panama began to stand out for its intransigence.
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http://www.economist.com/blogs/americasview/2010/12/panamas_finance_industry
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Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
Dredging Today – Panama Canal Expansion Moves Ahead
The expansion of Panama Canal joining the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans has been going on continuously since the work began 38 months ago.
“It is a work which continues its viability 96 years after it (the canal) was opened,” said Panama Canal Authority (ACP) Operations Executive Vice President Manuel Benitez.
The canal expansion is expected to be completed by 2014, the waterway’s 100-year anniversary.
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Dredging Today – Panama Canal Expansion Moves Ahead
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Panama Visa Requirements for Tourists « RushMyTravelVisa
Panama Visa Requirements for Tourists
With its pristine, quiet beaches, Panama is one of South America’s best-kept secrets. According to Gadling, only about a million tourists visited last year. However, as word gets out about everything the country has to offer tourists, that may soon change.
In fact, according to the New York Times, more and more Americans are even relocating to Panama to start their own businesses.
Despite the recent good press, for the time being Gadling says that “There’s just enough tourist infrastructure here to keep vacationers occupied — white water rafting, zipline excursions and fishing expeditions abound — but you’ll bypass the glut of chain restaurants, overpopulated coastlines and horrific traffic (outside of Panama City, of course) that typify so many other tropical destinations.”
Want to see Panama while it’s still relatively quiet? Depending on your travel plans, you might need to acquire a Panama visa beforehand. US citizens flying into Panama do not need a visa. Instead, they can purchase a tourist card at the airport. Fees for the card may be included as part of your airfare, so check with the airline. Cruise ship passengers only need a tourist card if they plan to get off the boat. In that case, the tourist card would be provided by the cruise line.
However, if you’re arriving by land, you’ll definitely need to apply for a Panama visa before you leave the states. Also, if your travel plans call for you to enter and exit the country more than once, you may choose to apply for your visa in advance so that you can get a multiple-entry visa issued.
Here’s what you need to get a Panama tourist visa:
- A valid US passport
- 1 completed Panama visa application
- 1 passport photo
- A copy of your itinerary.
- A copy of your plane tickets (if you’re flying in)
Get your Visa below
Panama Visa Requirements for Tourists « RushMyTravelVisa
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Panama heading for a skills shortage, especially in infrastructure
Employment prospects for expats in Panama and those wishing to move there is likely to soar in 2011 as the country heads for a skills shortage, it is claimed.
Some 34 major infrastructure projects are getting underway and are creating 34,000 direct jobs, according to government officials. Initially they are looking for skilled workers in the construction industry.
The construction of the first Metro line in the country in Panama City will employ some 3,000 people from 2011 to 2013. Work also begins next year on the third set of locks for the Panama Canal extension, needing some 6,000 workers.
According to analysts and experts in the labour market, it is likely that by 2013 demand will exceed supply. Consultants Insight Economy said in a report that from 2011 there will be a bottleneck and then 2014 will be a critical year.
A large-scale recruitment drive abroad is expected as other new projects, including a new tower block for the government’s finance ministry, come on stream.
Other employment sectors are also struggling to find staff. Last month a report from Manpower Panama identified a severe skills shortage. It said that 38% of employers in Panama have difficulty filling key positions within their organizations.
Manpower said that the most difficult jobs to fill are technicians, sales managers, secretaries, personal assistants, administrative assistants and administrative support personnel, accounting and finance staff.
Overall Manpower predicts that most sectors will be recruiting more in 2011. ‘Optimism among Panamanian employers is growing at a promising pace, reflecting the confidence they have gained in the aftermath of the global market downturn,’ said MarÃa Luisa Rocha, Operations Director of Manpower Mexico, Central America and Dominican Republic.
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Some 34 major infrastructure projects are getting underway and are creating 34,000 direct jobs, according to government officials. Initially they are looking for skilled workers in the construction industry.
The construction of the first Metro line in the country in Panama City will employ some 3,000 people from 2011 to 2013. Work also begins next year on the third set of locks for the Panama Canal extension, needing some 6,000 workers.
According to analysts and experts in the labour market, it is likely that by 2013 demand will exceed supply. Consultants Insight Economy said in a report that from 2011 there will be a bottleneck and then 2014 will be a critical year.
A large-scale recruitment drive abroad is expected as other new projects, including a new tower block for the government’s finance ministry, come on stream.
Other employment sectors are also struggling to find staff. Last month a report from Manpower Panama identified a severe skills shortage. It said that 38% of employers in Panama have difficulty filling key positions within their organizations.
Manpower said that the most difficult jobs to fill are technicians, sales managers, secretaries, personal assistants, administrative assistants and administrative support personnel, accounting and finance staff.
Overall Manpower predicts that most sectors will be recruiting more in 2011. ‘Optimism among Panamanian employers is growing at a promising pace, reflecting the confidence they have gained in the aftermath of the global market downturn,’ said MarÃa Luisa Rocha, Operations Director of Manpower Mexico, Central America and Dominican Republic.
Read more
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Friday, November 12, 2010
Unusual rains take lives, cause agricultural losses
by Eric Jackson, largely from other media
Something was different to holiday travelers this year. The capitalinos who headed to Las Tablas for the 1000 Pollera Parade on November 6 and decided to brave the night-time traffic coming back lucked out. Some of them noticed how Cocle's Rio Grande was getting up to the top of its banks. But those driving west the next morning from the Azuero Peninsula, or from Veraguas, Chiriqui or Bocas del Toro, faced a several-hour wait and monumental traffic jam. In the wake of six straight days of rain the river overflowed its banks late at night, and by the next morning was flowing over the Pan-American Highway. It was the first time anyone remembered that river doing that. The water wasn't all that deep, so buses and large trucks were allowed to proceed, but smaller vehicles had to wait until the waters subsided.
Panama's Copa Holdings reports growth in Q3 net income to USD 63.9m
Posted on: Fri, 12 Nov 2010 06:22:42 EST
Symbols: CPA
Nov 12, 2010 (M2 EQUITYBITES via COMTEX) --
Panama-based airline company Copa Holdings SA (NYSE: CPA | PowerRating), which owns Copa Airlines and Copa Airlines Colombia, reported on Thursday an increase in its third quarter net income to USD63.9m, or earnings per share of USD1.45.
In the same quarter in 2009 the company recorded net income of USD43.1m or USD0.98 per share.
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Tuesday, November 9, 2010
U.S. Investors Moving Assets Into Panama Real Estate
Panama is the only place in the world where you can set up an anonymous bearer share corporation and hold your real estate investments under this corporation. Under Panama law a bearer share corporation can be formed that is owned by the possessor of the physical certificates of stock with no recorded owner on record anywhere. The government of Panama does not even know who the owner of the offshore corporation is. Shares for a Panama Corporation do not have to have the owners name on them and they do not have to be kept in Panama. The books and records do not have to be kept in Panama either. If the offshore corporation is Panamanian, banks in Panama, has a resident address in Panama yet has offshore derived income it pays no Panama taxes and does not even need to file a Panama tax return. As you can imagine this set up has various perks for the owner of the corporation especially when it comes time to sell the appreciated real estate investment they have made.
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Panama Real Estate Properties
Monday, November 8, 2010
Finally here (Panama)
We weren't sure whether we would be able to drive to Panama, after yesterday, we very nearly didn't make it due to the roads in Costa Rica, but due to some hard work and driving, we did. Ciudad Neily, where we stayed last night was about 20km from the border, and we headed off early this morning to our final Central American country. The border crossing was pretty straightforward with everything well signposted, and a helpful customs man who pointed us in the right direction. I also think because the roads in Costa Rica were so bad that most people couldn't make it to the border, and especially none of the big trucks, so the crossing was pretty quiet. It took us an hour in total, our second fastest crossing.
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http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/alansdown-allen/2/1289423826/tpod.html
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http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/alansdown-allen/2/1289423826/tpod.html
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Latin Dubai
This may be some of the most exciting (and controversial) news to come out of Panama City of late: construction has commenced on two new islands in the Panama Bay.
In 2008, I reported in International Living rumors the Panama government was considering this massive project. Reports two years ago estimated the investment would be close to $140 million; the new figure released days ago puts the entire cost at $300 million.
The new islands are being built off the coast, just across from the ritzy new neighborhood known as Punta Pacifica.
The original plan called for 138 buildings of up to three stories in height—but there’s no word yet on whether that figure has since been revised. We do know, however, that the project includes the construction of two new bridges—one to connect the islands or “sectors” to each other, and another connecting the new islands to the mainland.
Per Panama’s La Estrella, the easternmost island will be about 25 acres, while the westernmost island will be slightly smaller, at just over 21 acres in size. Local consortium Grupo Los Pueblos is driving the project with the help of Mexican construction company Ingenieros Civiles Asociados (ICA).
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Two New Islands Planned Off the Coast of Panama City
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