Panama Property to see Accelerating Growth by August 2009-04-30

Property Abroad

The country has been unaffected by the credit crunch, and the property market kept afloat by undeterred American retirees. Because of this, prices are largely un-dented, and transaction volumes remain steady, said emerging markets analyst Julie Liddle, a spokesperson for the portal.

"Panama property is still selling at a steady rate to American retirees and lifestyle buyers. Prices have been largely unaffected by the global downturn, because there has hardly been a downturn. Around the world people are realising that property investment opportunities still exist abroad”, she explained.

"At the same time, Brits and Europeans tire of the abysmal interest rates and look at the better returns on offer from properties, and the latter will be further spurred on by the strengthening of the Pound. We predict that all this will evolve into a perfect storm, pushing investors to buy in the hottest markets in the next 2-4 months; and Panama will be high on that list," she finished.

Property Abroad.com is currently advertising dozens of properties for sale in Panama, with prices starting from £41,000. Unlike many other UK based portals, Property Abroad doesn't just have off plan property, and not only property in the cities, the portal has dozens of resale properties, properties in the major cities, and throughout the rural areas of Panama. The portal even has a selection of commercial opportunities, prices up to £10million.

About Property Abroad

Property Abroad is rapidly growing into one of the best known, trusted and most successful overseas property portals in the U.K. With a slick dynamic site and very reasonable rates Property Abroad currently has among the most extensive worldwide property listings on the net.

Panama's economy grew 2.59 percent in February 2009-04-23

Thomson Reuters

PANAMA CITY, April 23 (Reuters) - Panama's economy slowed dramatically in February to grow at a 2.59 percent rate from the same month a year earlier as the global economic crisis bit, the government said on Friday.

Fueled by luxury apartment construction, U.S.-Asia trade through the Panama Canal and a robust banking sector, Panama's dollarized economy led Latin America with near or above double-digit growth the last two years.

Analysts expect 2009 growth to fall to 3 percent or less as credit dries up, canal traffic drops and activity in Panama's large Caribbean free-trade zone slows.

'Panama has enjoyed extraordinary performance during the last six years and especially in the last two years the economy has had an accelerated and maybe even overheated growth,' said Domingo Latorraca, a consultant at Deloitte and former vice minister of economy.

April government reports showed new construction starts were down, stoking fears of a spike in unemployment, which so far remains near historical lows.

A $5 billion expansion of the canal that cranks into full gear later this year, as well as plans by both leading candidates for Panama's presidency to push infrastructure and housing projects, could mitigate job losses, analysts say.

'In Panama a crisis does not exist at this moment,' said Adolfo Quintero, an economist at the University of Panama. 'One of the elements of the crisis in other countries is unemployment.'

Government spending will be scrutinized this year as revenue is expected to drop, straining public coffers that have recently been in the black.

'I believe fiscal sustainability will be put to the test the next few years,' said Latorraca. 'The fiscal health the state has had in the last three or four years is a result of an important increase in income, not of discipline in expenditures.'

(Reporting by Sean Mattson; Editing by Dan Grebler) Keywords: PANAMA ECONOMY/

(R.Campbell@thomsonreuters.com; +52 55 5282 7142; Reuters Messaging: robert.campbell.reuters.com@reuters.net)

New Highway from Panama City to Colon Opens Today

Wednesday, April 29 2009 @ 02:25 PM EDT
Contributed by: Don Winner
Views: 338

By Kathyria Caicedo for Telemetro Reporta - The new highway from Panama City to Colón will be officially opened today. The thousands of people who have to drive to Colón every day to work will be able to use the new route as of this afternoon. The new highway will be named after “Don Alberto Motta Cardoze" and will be opened this afternoon. According to official information from the secretary of State Communications, Erick Rodríguez Auerbach, the official first drive of the new highway will occur at 3:30 pm, but there will not be any official ceremony held.

Hoy, se dará la apertura de la Autopista Panamá-Colón

Por : Kathyria Caicedo

La carretera será una respuesta a las múltiples quejas de las malas condiciones en que está la carretera Boyd-Roosevelt. Foto/MOP

Hoy, será la apertura oficial al flujo vehicular de la Autopista Panamá-Colón. Así es, las cientos de personas que diariamente viajan a Colón podrán utilizar desde hoy esta nueva vía.

La carretera denominada “Don Alberto Motta Cardoze" estará habilitada desde horas de la tarde. Según informó, el Secretario de comunicación del Estado, Erick Rodríguez Auerbach, el recorrido oficial iniciará a las 3:30 p.m., no obstante aclaró que no se realizará ninguna ceremonia. A continuación sus declaraciones.