(WIPO code: PA) (latest review October 2023)
by KATZAROV SA, Geneva, Switzerland
Panama
General Information
Area
78,200 sq. km.
Population
4,404,108 (2023).
Capital
Panama City.
Language
Spanish.
Currency
1 balboa = 1 U.S. dollar.
Most important agricultural and industrial products:
Bananas, gum, cocoa, coconuts, hides, coffee, pearls, mother of pearl, beans, sugar cane, sugar, rice, different kinds of timber including hard woods and dye woods, cattle, horses, dairy products, shrimps, furniture, hats, brooms, shoes, beer, spirits, perfumes, soap, soup pastes, clothing, tiles, etc.
General Remarks
The Republic of Panama, formerly a Department of Colombia, became independent on November 3, 1903.
Panama’s unique geographical position at the cross-roads of world shipping and air lanes, its free port facilities, its U.S. dollar based economy and its modern banking and tax legislation are only some of the factors which have helped Panama develop into an important financial and commercial center.
Industrial and agricultural investments are being extensively encouraged and, as a result, those areas have also begun to grow. Sugar and banana plantations as well as flourishing shrimp and cattle industry account for a large percentage of the country’s exports. An abundance of forestry resources, especially the much sought after hard wood, potential mineral deposits, tourism and the real estate boom, which is turning Panama into an excellent destination for second homes and investments, and should add to the country’s rapidly growing economy.