Mesoamerican countries, the Caribbean and Chile, are the markets where Panamanian exporters have set their attention to take advantage of new niches, geographical proximity and few restrictions to trade.
According to ProPanama executives, for several years the United States had been the main destination for Panamanian exports, but gradually sales to Europe have been gaining ground and now the plan is to take advantage of the niches that have not been exploited in some markets in the region.
A few days before the expiration of the crane service contract in Guatemala's Port of Santo Tomas de Castilla, local exporters expect a possible scenario of rising costs and slower operations.
The crane service contract was in force for 10 years and will expire on September 6. So far, businessmen do not know clearly what is the status of the tender, which the National Port Company Santo Tomas de Castilla (Empornac), must make to award the contract..
The Tax Administration of Guatemala has reported that it will be strengthening controls to detect cases that are not complying with the restrictions imposed on exports by land transport with Costa Rican registration or driver.
For the local export sector, strategies focused on transforming the productive matrix are needed, so that in the next 20 years’ income from sales abroad will reach $18 billion annually.
According to figures revealed by Nicaraguan exporters, between 2018 and 2019 income from sales abroad increased 6%, growing from $2,617 million to $2,782 million. This increase occurred in a context of falling production.
During 2018, sales of packaged foods in the United Kingdom exceeded $84 billion, and 36% corresponded to private label products, which have quickly entered this market.
The study "Trends and requirements of private label buyers in the food sector in the United Kingdom", prepared by Procomer Costa Rica, indicates that the United Kingdom stands out as the second country in Europe with greater penetration of private label.
Local companies with exportable supply from the agricultural and manufacturing sectors will participate on November 5 and 6 in a virtual business roundtable with buyers from different countries.
Participating businessmen will have the opportunity to meet virtually with potential buyers from 11 different markets: United States, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Dominican Republic, Chile, Europe, Canada and Mexico.
Since Cortizo took office, Panamanian exporters have been concerned about the negotiation of the agreement with China, as they believe the delays could affect the results achieved so far.
Guatemalan exporters report that President Trump's warning about export tariffs and taxes on remittances and transfers is raising doubts among U.S. buyers.
Uncertainty prevails among most Guatemalan businessmen after President Trump reacted to the provisional protection established by the Guatemalan Constitutional Court, which limits the functions of the Executive Branch to negotiate or sign any foreign policy agreement.
Although in the first half of the year sales abroad reported a slight decrease of 0.4% over the same period in 2018, the business sector in El Salvador expects exports to rebound in the remainder of the year.
Exports from El Salvador up to June of this year registered a total of $3,033.9 million, with a reduction of $13.6 million, compared to the same period in 2018, when the total amounted to $3,047.4 million, informed the Central Reserve Bank.
In Costa Rica, exporters ask the Central Bank to "avoid distortions in the fixing of the exchange rate because of the oversupply of dollars from the sources of financing for the fiscal deficit."
At the end of 2018 and the beginning of 2019, the dollar price against the Colon reported an upward trend, but from February 6 to mid-June 11, there has been a fall of up to 26 colones per dollar.
The outlook for the country's manufacturing industry is unfavorable, since in the first four months of the year companies outside the free trade zone reported a 5% year-on-year drop in their sales abroad.
Consistent with the behavior reported since the beginning of the year, in the first four months’ sales of Costa Rican goods abroad remained stagnant, totaling $3,693 million, just 0.2% above the figure reported in April 2018.
During the first three months of the year, sales of Costa Rican goods abroad totaled $2.757 million, just 0.5% above the $2.744 million reported as of March 2018.
The most updated data of the Foreign Trade Promoter (Procomer) specify that from January to March of this year the exports of companies in free trade zones registered a 12% year-on-year increase, and in the case of foreign sales of products in final regime fell 9%.
Because it has become expensive in Costa Rica to produce manufactured and agricultural goods, exports of services are increasingly gaining in market share.
Figures from the Promotora de Comercio Exterior (Procomer) detail that of the total exports in 2018, 56% corresponded to sale of goods and 44% to services. This composition is far from the figures of a decade ago, since in 2008 exports of goods monopolized 62% and services 38%.
Taking advantage of the commercial treaties signed by the country and increasing the exportable offer is key for foreign sales from Panama to be successful in the coming years.
According to figures from the General Comptroller of the Republic, during last year Panama's foreign sales totaled $672 million, a figure 2% higher than the $660 million reported in 2017.
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