Soft Landing
Predicted For Panama
Other countries in the region are in trouble, Panama is okay.
According to Dow Jones Business News, the Panamanian government’s
consolidated budget ended last year with a surplus equivalent to 0.4
percent of the country’s gross domestic product of us$97.8 million.
Sources from the government said that the surplus is lower than the
3.5 percent reported in 2007 as a result of higher government
spending.
Over the last twelve months the government started a series of
ambitious projects such as the Coastal Strip and the creation of a
network of roads that might eventually alleviate the traffic
congestion in the capital city.
President Martin Torrijos’ administration also had to face demands
for a pay rise from pensioners, doctors and civil servants, that
added unexpected expenses to the budget.
Analyst, Kathryn Rooney, from the Miami based bank Bulltick Capital
Market, said to the Dow Jones that given the circumstances of the
U.S. financial crisis and the global turmoil, the fiscal surplus is
a positive outcome for Panama.
However, the results were below Rooney’s hopes, because she was
expecting a surplus of 1.5 percent for 2008. |
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