The Panamanian market has become one of the favorite destinations for Venezuelan investment. Nowadays, 12 percent of new businesses are the result of Venezuelan investments, as reported by Leandro Ciciliani, the CEO of International Property Networks (IPN).

In the context of the Panama Information Seminar (Sipa-Expo), Ciciliani highlighted the expanding Venezuelan capital. "There are more than 20,000 Venezuelans with resident visas in Panama; there is USD 1.4 billion held by Venezuelans in Panama banks."

According to the IPN CEO, education, health, tourism and added value services are some of the sectors with more Venezuelan involvement.

In addition to the proximity between the two countries and a strategic location for international trade, Ciciliani underlined another advantage. "There are many laws which foster tourism, industry, and many laws which talk about economic or special system areas, where there is tax exemption and return on investment."

Manuel Ferreira, the Chief Financial Officer of the Panamanian Chamber of Trade, Industry and Agriculture, also noted the clout of Venezuelan investment in the Panamanian economy.

Based on the numbers supplied by the association, Panama gets about USD 2.4 billion for foreign investment, and the injection of Venezuelan capital is gathering momentum in some areas.

"Venezuela is not among the most significant, but in some sectors, it reaches up to 8 percent out of the total. The investment is gradually thickening," the high-ranking officer said.

In the opinion of Ferreira, another advantage of the Panamanian economy is that is has been immune to global crisis, unlike the European and US markets.

"It is a growing economy, unlike other markets where the economy has plummeted."

In addition to the economic sectors mentioned by Ciciliani, Ferreira said that Venezuelan businessmen are embarking upon the industrial area in order to cash in on the trade agreements between Panama and foreign markets.

"Nobody it to make an investment in default of an opportunity and Panama offers part of those opportunities."
rdeniz@eluniversal.com

Translated by Conchita Delgado