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Locks of the Panama Canal
Financial LInk(s) - Panama Stock Exchange (76 listings) - Canal Authority (English) - Chamber of Commerce (Spanish)
News Link(s) - Panama News (English) - El Panama America (Spanish) - Business Panama (English)
Area:
78,000 sq km (30,420 sq mi)
Population: 2.8 milion (growth rate 1.3%)
Capital city: Panama City (pop 700,000)
People: 65% mestizo, 14% African descent, 10% Spanish
descent, 10% Indian
Language: Spanish, English and Indian languages
Religion: 85% Roman Catholic, 10% Protestant, 5% Islamic
Government: Constitutional republic
President: Mireya Moscoso
GDP:
US$8.8 billion
GDP per head: US$3200
Annual growth: 4.1%
Inflation: 1.1%
Major industries: Banking, construction, petroleum
refining, brewing, cement and other construction materials, sugar
milling, shipping and agriculture
Major trading partners: USA, EU, Central America &
Caribbean, Japan
Known mostly for its famous canal, the country's natural attractions offer an irresistible lure to far-sighted travelers. Panama offers some of the finest birding, snorkeling and deep-sea fishing in the Americas. It is a proud nation that offers astounding wildlife adventures, that respects its seven indigenous peoples and that celebrates its Spanish heritage with frequent and colorful festivals. There's an inescapable feeling that you're in on a secret the rest of the traveling world has yet to discover. The country's indigenous name means 'abundance of fish', rafters can ride 20 sets of rapids in a single day, wildlife abounds in the scarcely-visited national parks, and a person can snorkel in the Caribbean Sea and swim in the Pacific Ocean...on the same day! No wonder the locals boast that Panama has much more to offer than nearby, traveler-soaked Costa Rica.
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Copyright (c) January 2004 - material on this page is not to be reproduced in any manner without the express written permission of Wildfire Asset Management Inc.
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