All articles | Radar Panamá

What Panama exports and to whom: the products and markets behind its trade balance

26

Sep

Business, Economy

What Panama exports and to whom: the products and markets behind its trade balance

In short: Panama exported goods worth 980 million balboas in 2025, its best figure since 2010, and 1,293 million including value-added exports from special regimes. The three main products are frozen shrimp, palm oil and bananas. The United States is the top buyer, followed by Taiwan, the Colón Free Zone and the Netherlands. It is an economy that lives on services, but whose goods exports are growing and diversifying. How much Panama exports According to the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC) and the Ministry of Commerce and Industries (MICI), registered goods exports totalled 980.1 million balboas in 2025,…

Minimum wage in Panama: how it is set, regions, sectors and how it is calculated

26

Sep

By Deilys Romero

Business, Economy

Minimum wage in Panama: how it is set, regions, sectors and how it is calculated

In short: the minimum wage in Panama is not a single figure: it is a table of 59 hourly rates for 74 economic activities, which change by region, sector and company size. The Government sets it every two years after negotiation between workers and employers in the National Minimum Wage Commission. The current table took effect on January 16, 2026, and the most common rate in urban commerce is 3.02 balboas per hour, about 653 balboas a month for a 48-hour week. What it is and who sets it The minimum wage is the lowest pay an employer can legally…

Which developers and residential projects AI recommends in Panama: Radar AI study

26

Sep

By Daniela Bohórquez

Rankings, Real Estate & ConstructionRadar AI

Which developers and residential projects AI recommends in Panama: Radar AI study

In short: Radar Panamá asked Perplexity and Brave AI which developers and which residential projects they recommend in Panama: 20 queries, 10 in Spanish and 10 in English, run on September 26, 2026, produced 106 mentions of 31 developers and 34 projects. Grupo Los Pueblos (GLP) appears in all 8 answers about developers, in both engines and both languages, followed by Empresas Bern with 6. Among projects, Oceana Santa María is the most mentioned (6), followed by Bosco di Santa María (5) and The Ivy (4). Santa María dominates the conversation: the AI names its towers in 9 of the…

Which dental clinics AI recommends in Panama: Radar AI study

26

Sep

By Daniela Bohórquez

Health & Wellness, RankingsRadar AI

Which dental clinics AI recommends in Panama: Radar AI study

In short: Radar Panamá asked Perplexity and Brave AI which dental clinic they recommend in Panama: 20 queries, 10 in Spanish and 10 in English, run on September 26, 2026, produced 101 mentions of 33 clinics and dentists. Clínica Ford Dental Spa appears in 15 of the 18 answers that named clinics, followed by Pacific Dental Clinic at Hospital Punta Pacífica (11) and Clínica Arango Orillac (10). When the question narrows to Costa del Este the map changes: Dental One, Ford, Arango Orillac and Dental Life appear in all four answers, in both engines and both languages. No clinic paid…

Which immigration lawyers AI recommends in Panama: Radar AI study

26

Sep

By Deilys Romero

Business, CompaniesRadar AI

Which immigration lawyers AI recommends in Panama: Radar AI study

In short: Radar Panamá asked two AI assistants with web search, Perplexity and Brave AI, which immigration lawyers they recommend in Panama. Twenty queries, 10 in Spanish and 10 in English, run on September 26, 2026, produced 121 mentions of 46 different firms. Kraemer & Kraemer appears in 16 of the 20 answers and is the only firm present in both engines and both languages. Behind it come Quijano & Associates, NDM Law Firm, International Relocation Firm and Immigration Visa 247. The language of the question changes the map: of the 46 firms, 22 appear only in Spanish, 15 only…

How a video goes viral on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube: the signals the algorithms measure

26

Sep

By Daniela Bohórquez

Lifestyle, Trends

How a video goes viral on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube: the signals the algorithms measure

In short: TikTok, Instagram and YouTube do not reward big accounts but each video on its own. All three systems test the content with a small group of users, measure how long they watch it, whether they finish it, whether they share or save it, and only then push it to larger audiences. Watch time and retention in the first few seconds are the strongest signal; shares and saves weigh more than likes. With around 1.9 billion monthly users on TikTok, more than 2 billion on Reels and tens of billions of daily views on Shorts, understanding that logic explains…

Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games: dates, venues, new sports and Panama’s chances

26

Sep

By Daniela Bohórquez

Lifestyle, Sports

Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games: dates, venues, new sports and Panama’s chances

In short: the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games will be held from 14 to 30 July 2028 and will be the largest in history: 353 medal events at 49 venues spread across the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Baseball and softball return, as do cricket (in T20 format, absent since 1900) and lacrosse (since 1908), and flag football and squash make their debut. It is the third time the city hosts the Games, after 1932 and 1984. Panama, with four Olympic medals in its history, will look to expand on the delegation of eight athletes it took to Paris 2024. Contents…

Tourism in Panama: the figures of the sector’s best year and what they mean for business

26

Sep

By Daniela Bohórquez

Business, Economy

Tourism in Panama: the figures of the sector’s best year and what they mean for business

In short: Panama closed 2025 with 3,004,266 international visitors, the first time it has passed three million, and tourism revenue of 6.583 billion dollars. In the first half of 2026 growth accelerated to 17.4%, with 1,755,998 visitors and spending of around 3.7 billion. Tocumen Airport moved almost 21 million passengers in 2025 and projects 23 million for 2026, cruises are growing 21.6% and international conferences have doubled. The World Travel & Tourism Council forecasts that the country's tourism GDP will grow 8.4% this year. Behind the figures lie concrete opportunities for hotels, transport, food, real estate and professional services. Contents…

Medical tourism in Panama: accredited hospitals, treatments and how to organise the trip

26

Sep

By Daniela Bohórquez

Guides, Health & Wellness

Medical tourism in Panama: accredited hospitals, treatments and how to organise the trip

In short: Panama treats around 50,000 international patients a year in a private system with two hospitals accredited by the Joint Commission International, Hospital Punta Pacífica and Clínica Hospital San Fernando, and a public network that expanded with Ciudad de la Salud, a 1,368-bed complex. The most requested procedures are dentistry, cosmetic surgery, orthopaedics and executive check-ups, with savings the sector's firms put at around half compared with the United States. Tocumen's connectivity, the dollar and proximity to North America explain the growth, but the patient should verify accreditation, the doctor's licence and insurance coverage before travelling. Contents of this…

Panama’s special regimes: Colón Free Zone, Panamá Pacífico, SEM and EMMA

26

Sep

By Deilys Romero

Business, Economy

Panama’s special regimes: Colón Free Zone, Panamá Pacífico, SEM and EMMA

In short: Panama maintains four special regimes to attract companies with international activity. The Colón Free Zone, the largest free trade zone in the Americas, moved 22.615 billion dollars in 2025 according to preliminary figures from the Comptroller's Office and has more than 2,600 companies dedicated to re-exporting. Panamá Pacífico, on the former Howard base, combines a special economic zone, logistics and offices under Law 41 of 2004. The SEM regime for multinational headquarters, created by Law 41 of 2007, brings together 192 companies and some 10,000 jobs. The EMMA licence, under Law 159 of 2020, covers manufacturing and production-related…

Buying property in Panama as a foreigner: process, taxes and exemptions

26

Sep

By Daniela Bohórquez

Guides, Real Estate & Construction

Buying property in Panama as a foreigner: process, taxes and exemptions

In short: a foreigner can buy property in Panama with the same rights as a Panamanian, in their own name or through a company, without needing to reside in the country. The process runs through a promise of sale, a title search at the Public Registry, a deed before a notary and registration. The seller pays the 2% transfer tax and the 3% advance on income tax; the buyer bears the notary, registration and lawyer costs. Since Law 66 of 2017 the primary residence is exempt from property tax up to 120,000 dollars of cadastral value and is taxed at…

Residency in Panama by investment: the three routes compared

26

Sep

By Deilys Romero

Guides, Professional Services & Technology

Residency in Panama by investment: the three routes compared

In short: Panama offers three main residency routes for anyone arriving with capital or income of their own. Qualified Investor grants permanent residency in about 30 days with a minimum investment of 300,000 dollars in first-sale real estate (500,000 on the secondary market) or 500,000 in securities or deposits, under Executive Decree 17 of September 2026, which replaced Decree 722 of 2020. Friendly Nations grants two-year temporary residency, convertible to permanent, to nationals of a list of countries with a real estate investment of 200,000 dollars, an equivalent deposit or an employment contract. Pensionado grants permanent residency to anyone who…