About Panama
The economic present

Economic Growth
In the first quarter of 2006, the real growth of the gross internal product for Panama was 8.1% as a successful result of the economic policy, the fiscal program, and strategies and defined financial goals

Debt Profile
The interest costs went down from 9.35% to 6%. Panama cancelled the Brady bonds early and decreased the public debt by USD $ 40 millions. 

The consolidated net debt as it relates to the gross internal product is only 45%..

Sustained Growth Tendency
Net exports are growing at an annual rate higher than 10% since 2004, the Colon Free Zone reexport, the telecommunications and the airlines are growing between 15 and 20% a year on average.

The open unemployment rate, which was 12% in 2001, reached 6.8% in March of 2006.

The balance of the banking internal credits started to grow at a rate higher than 10% per year as of 2004; while international operations, grew by more than 15% per year.

Foreign direct investment doubled to USD $ 1,000 million during the 2004-2005 period, while in 2006 it reached almost USD $3,000 million because of the HSBC - BANITSMO bank consolidation.