Panama Economy 5-22-24

Nominal GDP $238.91B, Per capita GDP $18.725, Population 4,468,087, Debt to GDP 56.4%, Inflation 20.4%, Unemployment 7.4%, Trade deficit $9.3B, 2022 Exports $6.62B, Imports $29.24B Land area 28,703 sq miles, Arable land data is not available. Urban 69%, Rural 31%,

Exports The top exports of Panama are Copper Ore ($2.94B), Passenger and Cargo Ships ($691M), Special Purpose Ships ($195M), Bananas ($191M), and Refined Petroleum ($179M), exporting mostly to China ($1.14B), Japan ($785M), South Korea ($539M), United States ($357M), and Spain ($306M).

Panama's agricultural production is mainly comprised of basic grains, such as rice, maize and beans; fruits, including bananas, pineapples and oranges; and vegetables such as onions and potatoes

The economy of Panama is largely dependent on the mining, agriculture, and timber industries. The country has one of the largest copper ore reserves in the world, as well as large reserves of gold, manganese, and iron.

Import goods The top imports of Panama are Crude Petroleum ($16.1B), Refined Petroleum ($11.7B), Passenger and Cargo Ships ($5.4B), Packaged Medicaments ($819M).

The Panama Canal is backed up and loosing customers because the drought does not allow the locks to fill and lift the ships. We could use a rise in sea levels, but that’s not happening. The amount of water released as polar ice melts is insufficient.

The US began building the Panama Canal in 1904 and finished it in 1914. The US operated the canal until 1979, when Jimmy Carter gave it to Panama. George W Bush had to remove Panama’s President Manuel Ortega in 1989. Panama operated the canal until the recent drought and after the drought, it will operate again.

Panama needs to get its canal working and jail its visiting drug gangs.

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader