Welcome to the 9th edition of our Weekly Offshore Panama News roundup. This week we’ll be taking a look at some of the reasons you should visit Panama, Panama real estate trends, information sharing between governments in Central America and more. President Ricardo Martinelli is trying to increase the level of respect shown by politicians, and a mine in Cocle is set to close – find out more in our Weekly Offshore roundup from the isthmus!
Martinell Calls for Tolerance and Respect in Political Campaigning
Never a man to mince his words, President Martinelli is demanding that all candidates and parties show a greater degree of respect for the elective process and each other. While his own style is famously pugilistic and direct, he is condemning the aggressive behaviour of candidates in the run up to the 2014 elections.
“We know that all candidates running for elected office do so with the strong desire to win, but only one can win, and that is why I urge everyone , winners and losers, to recognize and accept the other ‘s triumph,” he said .
TE magistrate Heriberto Araúz added his plea to the political combatants asking them to raise the level of discourse “avoiding defamatory, hateful personal attacks on the adversaries and their families or through dirty propaganda .”
Source: Newsroom Panama
Punta Pacifica Real Estate and Pricing Trends for December 2013
Fair warning from one of Panama City’s most respected real estate brokers, as he predicts that we are seeing the tail end of a flat 12 months in one of Panama’s most exclusive areas. With so many new apartments hitting the market, it is a distinct possibility this flat patch may continue for a while. Developer’s asking prices may stay at their current point for a few more months, in what is presently a slightly flat market for high end real estate.
“Pricing trends in Punta Pacifica have been flat over the last 12 months with the exception of Trump Tower which experienced a significant drop in price from 2012 – 2013 on the announcement of a possible bond default, however the announcement of the casino, success of the hotel, and progress on the beach club have helped to stabilize the correction in that specific building.
The impact of the 448 new apartments in Grand Tower hitting the market during the first two quarters of 2014 should be minor, considering the developers are reporting more than 80% of the building is committed to buyers who have put down deposits and/or closed fully on their units.”
Source: Panama Equity Real Estate
Panama Corruption Report
In our latest blog post we talk about the level of corruption in Panama, which has previously been a serious problem for the country. The government is keen to stamp out a hugely wasteful practice and is putting resources aside to help combat the problem, with a corruption conference having just finished in the country. We break down the entire situation with some incisive statistics below.
“Panama, like many Central and Latin American countries, has had a bad reputation for open corruption for many years. Now Panama is taking steps with the current administration of President Martinelli to change not only the public’s perception of government corruption but to also make it easier for the public to gain access to government documents and information.
In regards to the question, “How does Panama Rank in the worldwide corruption report”, it can now be said that with President Martinelli’s new initiatives that Panama will be rising in the ranks of future reports as Panama embarks on creating more transparency in government affairs while its citizens can gain easier access to government information and documents.”
Great Expectations on Hold in Cocle
A mining project in Panama’s province of Cocle has been temporarily shut down, following the restructuring of the host company. This closure is expected to have a serious knockdown effect on the surrounding area’s economy, with many services having sprung up since the project started. The now reduced demand on the new infrastructure may be bolstered by a marketing push for the region, under the banner of tourism.
“The restructuring undertaken by First Quantum in the Cobre Panama project after having bought it from Inmet Mining has affected commercial activity in Cocle says a Panama America report.
The slowdown in project development, reduction in the payroll of workers and termination of some contracts with local companies has caused many businesses in the area to see falling sales.
Initially the project created high expectations among the people of Penonomé, La Pintada and Coclesito who built hotels, restaurants, gas stations and other businesses, believing that the demand generated by the Cobre Panama project would last for many years.”
Source: Newsroom Panama
Cayman Islands and Costa Rica agree to share bank account details with US
Further pressure heaped on offshore havens this week, with the news that the Cayman Islands and Costa Rica are agreeing to greater transparency in their dealings with U.S. tax proceedings. This is part of a concerted drive to close tax loopholes for U.S. citizens living or working abroad, begun under the Obama administration.
“The United States has signed agreements with the Cayman Islands and Costa Rica to help those countries’ banks comply with an anti-tax evasion law starting next year, the Treasury Department said on Friday.
The deals are part of the US effort to enforce the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which was enacted in 2010 and is set to take effect in July 2014. FATCA requires foreign financial institutions to tell the US Internal Revenue Service about Americans’ offshore accounts worth more than $50,000.”
Source: The Guardian
Canada and Panama Expand Air Transport Relationship
A transport agreement between Canada and Panama has been agreed, allowing the volume and frequency of flights between the two global travel hubs to increase. Panama has been identified as a huge potential market for transfer and destination flights, with flights through Canada and the continental United States growing in number over the last few years.
“The expanded agreement, which is being applied immediately, was announced Wednesday, December 4 by Canadian Minister of Transport Lisa Raitt and Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade who described Panama as a “priority market.”
The agreement builds on the 2008 Canada-Panama Air Transport Agreement and will give greater flexibility for airlines to offer more air services using the flights of other airlines, commonly known as code-sharing.”
Source: Newsroom Panama
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