© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Folks journey their bicycles, whereas the Panama Metropolis’s skyline is seen within the background, in Panama Metropolis, Panama, December 2, 2023. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photograph
PANAMA CITY (Reuters) – Panama’s financial progress subsequent 12 months is now estimated at about 2.5%, down “in light of new scenarios,” Economic system and Finance Minister Hector Alexander stated on Tuesday.
Talking at a 2024 draft funds presentation, Alexander stated the decreased determine didn’t embrace inflation.
Alexander didn’t give additional element on the reasoning behind the reduce, however a ministry official instructed Reuters earlier this month that the nation may slash its 2024 GDP forecast after the closure of a profitable mine.
Official Hernan Arboleda stated on the time the ministry was taking a look at 1% to 2% financial progress in 2024, down from a earlier estimate of 5%.
Final week, the Panamanian authorities moved to “definitively” shut down Canadian miner First Quantum (NASDAQ:)’s Cobre Panama mine within the nation, which accounts for some 5% of its GDP, after a court docket ruling discovered its contract unconstitutional.
Panamanians had since October protested vehemently in opposition to the mine, arguing the contract was too beneficiant.
