Japan, India and Australia will join the list of countries with which Panama will exchange tax information.
Of the agreements that have been negotiated in recent months, "... most of the agreements are already in place and only 6 are pending signing (Austria, Belgium, Germany, Bahrain, Vietnam and Colombia)."
It has been announced that using a loan from the Development Bank of Latin America a second waste water treatment module in the Bay of Panama will be financed.
The National Economic Council (CENA) gave its approval to formalize the loan with the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) to finance part of the plan to clean up the Bay of Panama.
For every coin of 25 cents made by the Royal Mint of Canada, the Panamanian government paid 19 cents.
Data collected from documents published on PanamaCompra by Prensa.com shows that "... This year, the MEF signed with the Canadian company a contract for the manufacture of 12 million coins in denomintions of 25 cents with a value of 2 million 280 thousand US dollars. "
On August 4 the Ministry of Finance will auction $50 million in Treasury notes maturing in June 2019.
The auction will take place on August 4, with a settlement date on August 7 and maturity on June 5, 2019, and the resources will be used to "finance the government ... or to pay for other debt programs."
According to a statement published by the Panama Stock Exchange (BVP) the auction will be American, multiple price and will be held in the BVP, the paying agent is the National Bank of Panama and the registration agent is Central Latinoamericana de Valores. Submission of bids will be received from 9:00 am. 10:00 pm. through the electronic auction system of the BVP.
The Cabinet has approved a draft law which incorporates non-financial sectors such as free zones and real estate agents to the list of entities required to report information according to the law.
From a statement issued by the Government of Panama:
In the interest of protecting important sectors of the Panamanian economy and complying with international standards on transparency and due diligence, the Cabinet approved on Tuesday a draft law against money laundering, terrorist financing and financing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
A bill which is to be submitted to the National Assembly in February establishes an obligation to report suspicious activities which are not specifically financial.
This initiative is part of the package agreed with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to strengthen legislation against money laundering and exit so called "greylists". It is expected that an updated legal structure will be in place by June 2015.
An announcement has been made that in the short-term auctions of securities by Panamanian State will no longer be made in the local market and instead will be carried out through the Bloomberg platform.
Given the lack of investment in technology on the part of Panama stock exchange, the government has announced that it will begin making the auctions using the Bloomberg platform. The will allow for more transparent transactions by the State.
The Ministry of Finance has announced that the construction of Panama City's Metro Line 2 will be paid in tranches over a period of eight years from 2015 to 2022.
60% of the financing will be raised under the administration of President Juan Carlos Varela and 40% under the government administration to follow him. Between September 30 and October 3 the clarification meetings for companies interested in participating in the tender will be concluded.
The tender documents for the construction of Line 2 of the Metro in Panama requests the companies to include project financing as an option.
Once bids have been submitted by the companies concerned, the Panama Metro Secretariat and the Ministry of Finance will evaluate the proposed financing conditions in each offer, looking for "the best possible interest rate".
Construction, mining and financial sectors drove growth in the Gross Domestic Product in the first six months of the year.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Economy and Finance of Panama:
Growth projection for the closure of the 2014 is held in 7%, leading the region.
Panama's economy grew by 6.2%, in the first six months of 2014, to be located the Gross
The government sold government 10 year term bonds for $1.25 billion on the international market at 4%, the lowest interest rate in the list of international issues placed by the country.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Finance and Economy of Panama:
Panama launched (on September 15, 2014), in the international market, a successful issuance of global bonds for $1,250 million, which exceeded expectations, having demand of more than six times the initial offer, and obtaining the lowest coupon in the country's history.
On August 12th the Ministry of Finance will auction $20 million with a one year term through the electronic system of the Stock Exchange.
The settlement will be made on August 15th, according to Katyuska Correa, Director of Public Credit, in a note to the Panama Stock Exchange.
Prensa.com reports that "...The presentation of offers will be between 9:00 and 10:00 am through the electronic bidding system of the Stock Exchange. "
The government has reported that a fake form is in circulation asking non-residents in the country for verification of bank accounts.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Economy and Finance in Panama:
The Ministry of Finance wishes to make public knowledge, that there is a Verification Form for Non Resident Bank Accounts in Panama in circulation that is fraudulent, since in the organizational structure of the institution there is no such unit.