Welcome to the Panama Weekly News Roundup! This week, Hertz announces implementing large-scale equipment rental to construction companies in Panama. A hard deadline is set for Colombia to rescind its “tax haven” label. Panama gets rid of the “Crisol de Razas”, and the Canal expansion may be way over budget. Here’s the latest.
Hertz Equipment Rental Launches In Panama To Serve Construction And Industrial Markets
If you’ve rented a car in the States, you’ve probably heard of Hertz. But did you know that they also deal in large-scale construction equipment? Hertz (known as HERC for equipment) has announced this week that they will be launching their industrial equipment rental into the Panamanian market to help capitalize on both Canal construction, and the residential/industrial construction boom.
The launch of HERC Panama comes amid significant, ongoing industrial projects in the country, including the Panama Canal expansion, Panama metro line development, and road and highway construction. Additional major projects include the Cold Chain distribution network (farming), airport expansion, distribution, mining, water supply, hospital and housing development and energy services. The Government of Panama’s total investment in these programs and more is variously estimated at $15-20 billion over the next 3-5 years.
“This significant launch provides the market with a first class, value-added equipment rental supplier in Panama,” said Brian MacDonald, Interim Chief Executive Officer, Hertz. “In addition, it enables Hertz Equipment Rental Corporation to extend its international footprint into one of the fastest growing markets within Latin America.”
Source: MarketWatch
Panama gives Colombia a week to remove it from tax-haven list. What impact will it have?
As we mentioned earlier in the week, tensions have been flaring between Panama and Colombia over a classification of “tax haven” as an officially recognized aspect of their trade relations. To put it simply, Colombia asked Panama to produce banking information. Panama did not comply. And now, Colombia is seeking higher tariffs from any one of their citizens or businesses that decide to move their money to Panama. But what impact will it really have?
If Colombia does not accede to its demand within a “period of seven days,” the Central American nation will include its neighbor on a list of countries that discriminate against it and unveil other retaliatory measures, Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela said in a statement Tuesday.
A committee made up of Panama’s Foreign Relations, Economy and Finance, and Trade and Industries ministries will draw up those measures, the statement said, without providing specifics. Bogota formally designated Panama as a tax haven on Oct. 8, three days after that country failed to meet a deadline for signing a fiscal information-sharing agreement.
Source: Fox News Latino
Panama Canal upgrade could come in over-budget
The Panama Canal expansion project is already behind on schedule, but will it also come in drastically over budget. According to new figures, Canal authorities may be way off in their budget calculations for the massive project.
Lawsuits around the budget excesses could make the total bill to the Panamanian government come in higher than projected, said the waterway’s administrator, Jorge Quijano. “We’re still within the budget of $5.25 billion, but if there were a verdict against us we would definitely go over,” he told journalists.
Panama has had a rocky relationship with the consortium carrying out the upgrade to the canal’s locks, Grupo Unidos por el Canal (GUPC), which is headed by Spanish construction firm Sacyr. The expansion, aimed at modernizing the canal to accomodate mega-ships carrying up to 14,000 containers — triple the current capacity — was launched in 2008 and is currently running a year behind schedule.
Source: The West Australian
“Panama Nixes “Crisol de Razas” Immigration Fair; Tightens Restrictions.” Find out how this will affect you.
After a new president, much speculation, and the pressure from many in the public, Panama announced that it will begin to cut out the “Crisol de Rasas” (melting pot) immediately. This may come as a shock for many immigrants who had planned on going through the process to skip immigration, or avoid paying lawyer fees. However, with so many visas available, and so many other opportunities to immigrate legally, will this make much of a difference?
Will this make it tougher to immigrate to Panama? If you’re from North America, Europe, or plan on starting a business: NO. Panama still has some of the friendliest laws for legal immigration in the region, and all of the 8 visas that grant permanent residency will be unaffected. This will, however, affect potential legal status for people already living illegally in the country, as well as people trying to immigrate without going through a lawyer or due processing.
In other words, this measure was meant to slow down illegal immigration, more than it was a measure to curb immigration in general. Panama is still encouraging foreign investment, and foreign workers in skilled labor areas and foreign-run corporations.
Read more aboutPanama’s immigration fairs
