Panama

Panama’s dollarized economy rests primarily on a well-developed services sector that accounts for three-quarters of GDP. Services include operating the Panama Canal, banking, the Colon Free Zone, insurance, container ports, flagship registry, and tourism. Economic growth will be bolstered by the Panama Canal expansion project that began in 2007 and is scheduled to be completed by 2014 at a cost of $5.3 billion - about 25% of current GDP. The expansion project will more than double the Canal’s capacity, enabling it to accommodate ships that are now too large to transverse the transoceanic crossway, and should help to reduce the unemployment rate. The United States and China are the top users of the Canal. Panama also plans to construct a metro system in Panama City, valued at $1.2 billion and scheduled to be completed by 2014. Panama’s aggressive infrastructure development projects will likely lead the economy to continued growth in 2011. Strong economic performance has not translated into broadly shared prosperity as Panama has the second worst income distribution in Latin America. About 30% of the population lives in poverty, however, during TORRIJOS’s term poverty was reduced from 40% to 30% and unemployment dropped from 12% to 6%. Not a CAFTA signatory, Panama in December 2006 independently negotiated a free trade agreement with the US, which, when implemented, will help promote the country’s economic growth. Seeking removal from the Organization of Economic Development’s gray-list of tax havens, Panama has also recently signed various double taxation treaties with other nations.

$43.48 billion (2010 est.)

$41.37 billion (2009 est.)

$40.4 billion (2008 est.)

$27.2 billion (2010 est.)

5.1% (2010 est.)

2.4% (2009 est.)

10.7% (2008 est.)

$12,700 (2010 est.)

$12,300 (2009 est.)

$12,200 (2008 est.)

1.49 million

4.4% (2010 est.)

6.7% (2009 est.)

28.6% (2006 est.)

56.1 (2003)

48.5 (1997)

26.8% of GDP (2010 est.)

40.8% of GDP (2010 est.)

44.6% of GDP (2009 est.)

3.3% (2010 est.)

2.4% (2009 est.)

8.25% (31 December 2009 est.)

8.16% (31 December 2008 est.)

$5.04 billion (31 December 2010 est)

$4.404 billion (31 December 2009 est)

$24.17 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$21.78 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$23.2 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$20.17 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$8.048 billion (31 December 2009)

$6.568 billion (31 December 2008)

$6.219 billion (31 December 2007)

bananas, rice, corn, coffee, sugarcane, vegetables; livestock; shrimp

construction, brewing, cement and other construction materials, sugar milling

2% (2010 est.)

6.322 billion kWh (2007 est.)

5.17 billion kWh (2007 est.)

124.9 million kWh (2007 est.)

8.74 million kWh (2007 est.)

2 bbl/day (2009 est.)

93,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

4,803 bbl/day (2007 est.)

87,100 bbl/day (2007 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

0 cu m (2008 est.)

0 cu m (2008 est.)

0 cu m (2008 est.)

0 cu m (2008 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

-$813 million (2010 est.)

-$2.33 billion (2009 est.)

$12.52 billion (2010 est.)

$10.9 billion (2009 est.)

bananas, shrimp, sugar, coffee, clothing

Greece 21.03%, US 17.63%, Japan 9.87%, Germany 4.28%, Italy 4.27% (2009)

$16.05 billion (2010 est.)

$12.93 billion (2009 est.)

capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, chemicals

Japan 36.21%, Singapore 16.86%, US 12.3%, China 7.84% (2009)

$3.525 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$3.028 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$13.85 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$13.7 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$NA

$NA

balboas (PAB) per US dollar - 1 (2010), 1 (2009), 1 (2008), 1 (2007), 1 (2006)