Panama - HANDELSBALANS

Panama’s trade deficit narrowed to PAB 1,104.4 million in October 2019 from PAB 1,212.4 million in the corresponding month of the previous year. Exports jumped 19.1 percent from a year ago to PAB 63.7 million while imports dropped for the fourth straight month by 7.7 percent to PAB 1,168 million.

The trade deficit in Panama narrowed to PAB 911.6 million in September 2019 from PAB 952.4 million in the corresponding month of the previous year, the lowest since February 2018. Exports jumped 41.4 percent from a year earlier to PAB 61.6 million while imports fell for the third straight month by 2.3 percent to PAB 973.2 million.

Panama’s trade deficit narrowed to PAB 979.5 million in August 2019 from PAB 1038.7 million in the corresponding month of the previous year. Exports rose 6.9 percent over a year earlier to PAB 63.1 million, boosted by higher sales of banana (39.9 percent); fish oil & flour (9.5 percent); shrimp (6.9 percent); and coffee (104.9 percent). Imports dropped 5 percent to PAB 1042.6 million, mostly due to lower purchases of consumption goods (-8.3 percent), in particular domestic products (-11.8 percent), semi-durable (-6.2 percent), and fuels & lubricants (-20 percent); and capital (-13.7 percent), namely agricultural (-38.2 percent), construction (-20 percent) and other capital goods (-22.9 percent).

Panama’s trade deficit narrowed to PAB 1036.9 million in July 2019 from PAB 1070.6 million in the corresponding month of the previous year. Exports jumped 35.7 percent over a year earlier to PAB 77.4 million, driven by higher sales of fish oil (213 percent); banana (13.5 percent); coffee (123 percent); wood (60.9 percent) and others (28.7 percent). Imports fell 1.2 percent to PAB 1114.4 million, mainly due to lower purchases of consumption goods (-8.4 percent), namely non-durable (-3.4 percent), semi-durable (-1.4 percent), and fuels & lubricants (-17.9 percent); and capital (-0.7 percent), in particular transport equipment & telecommunication (-1.2 percent), agricultural (-21.5 percent) and other capital goods (-12.3 percent).

Panama’s trade deficit widened to PAB 1006.6 million in June 2019 from PAB 973.8 million in the same month of the previous year. Imports rose 12.2 percent year-on-year to PAB 1161.4 million, driven by higher purchases of consumption goods (12.4 percent), of which non-durable (-7.3 percent), and fuels & lubricants (23.9 percent); capital (21 percent), namely transport equipment & telecommunication (97.8 percent) and construction (9.8 percent); and intermediate goods (3.6 percent), in particular raw materials and intermediate products for the industry (17.2 percent). Exports jumped 151.3 percent to PAB 154.8 million, boosted by sales of fish oil (34.4 percent), coffee (7 percent), wood (25.3 percent) and others (707.1 percent).

Panama’s trade deficit narrowed to PAB 1038.1 million in May 2019 from PAB 1090.5 in the same month of the previous year. Imports dropped 5.5 percent year-on-year to PAB 1101.3 million, mostly due to lower purchases of consumption goods (-9.4 percent), namely non-durable (-9.7 percent), and fuels & lubricants (-15.9 percent); intermediate (-11 percent), in particular raw materials and intermediate products for agriculture (-16.7 percent), industrial raw products (-0.4 percent) and construction materials (-28.5 percent). Meanwhile, imports of capital goods rose (7.1 percent), of which construction (41.7 percent) and other capital goods (13.1 percent). Exports fell 15.6 percent to PAB 63.2 million, mainly due to lower sales of fish (-23.3 percent); steel, copper & aluminum waste (-53 percent); wood (-39.2 percent); unrefined sugar (-98.5 percent) and shrimp (-51.9 percent).