http://panamasol.com The Good Life Under The Sun! Mon, 11 Aug 2008 04:18:24 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The higher costs of everything are forcing the government to increase the money paid to the 175,000 people who receive pensions in the country. At just $60 a month increase it will amount to over $10 million a month that was not in the original budget. The combination of higher ... http://panamasol.com/pensioner-benefits-raised-in-panama/487/ The proposed plan to have automatic wage adjustments in response to inflation would spell disaster for foreign investment in the country. When Panama needs investment the most investors will turn to other countries rather than bare the risk of ever increasing labor costs. On a local level, wage increases translate ... http://panamasol.com/recipe-for-disaster-wages-adjusted-for-inflation/486/ The article in La Prensa puts a very positive spin on the fact that Panama has the highest mortgage to GDP ratio of any country in Latin America by a factor of 400%. I certainly agree that making homes available to the population at subsidized interest rates is a ... http://panamasol.com/number-of-mortgages-in-panama-highest-in-region/485/ On June 22nd the President announced that they had signed an agreement with Taiwan to extend their free trade agreement. Coincidentally just one week later, Taiwan donates $2.6 million for a new hospital. Sounds like a good deal to me! Panama, Taiwan, ink FTA Panama and Taiwan have agreed to renew the ... http://panamasol.com/panama-and-taiwan-deal-brings-quick-benefits-to-panama/484/ An article in La Prensa today quotes port authority excuses for declining numbers in cruise ships. There are a number of reasons for the decline none of which are mentioned in the article but are obvious to any in the industry. You can read a well written piece about the ... http://panamasol.com/cruise-ports-get-it-wrong-along-with-ipat/483/ This article points out that many of the contractors performing public works in the country did not have an escalation clause in their contracts and did not count on the huge increases in construction costs that have been seen over the last year or so. Of course when this happens ... http://panamasol.com/because-of-escalating-prices-contracts-must-be-revised/482/ This article is about the continued battle by residents of the reverted areas against the supreme court decision to change the zoning law of the areas. Allowing high rises in an other wise low rise residential area has caused those folks enough grief that they have been protesting for weeks. ... http://panamasol.com/another-condo-project-canceled-and-residents-continue-protest-in-reverted-areas/481/ I sometimes post news on other countries in Central America that I find might be of interest to expat's considering buying property in those lands. Since last year’s election of Daniel Ortega to the Presidency of Nicaragua, I have been following the events there more closely. Nicaragua is a beautiful ... http://panamasol.com/nicaragua-the-inherent-dangers-of-being-a-militant-mecca/480/ PANAMA CITY, June 24 (Reuters) - Panama's economic activity rose 9.48 percent in April over the year-ago period, the government said on Tuesday, rebounding from a near five-year low posted in March. Growths in the construction, mining, hotel and restaurant sectors were the strongest performers, according to the Comptroller General's office. Analysts ... http://panamasol.com/panama-april-economic-activity-up-948-pct/479/ Here is an article from La Prensa that is so ridicules that I have to post it. The housing ministry believes there are not enough rental properties on the market and incentives need to be given in order to get this part of the real estate market going. They honestly ... http://panamasol.com/not-enough-apartment-rentals-in-the-city/478/