Welcome to the Panama Weekly News Roundup! Here’s the latest.
Construction of Panama-Costa Rica Bridge to start in June
Panama has two major border crossings with neighboring Costa Rica, and this year, one of them will get a major facelift. The crossing at Sixaola currently consists of a small bridge that is long overdue for an overhaul. This is why both governments are preparing a $15 million bridge to help modernize it.
Bidding for the project is scheduled to take place in April, Omar Gomez, director of the ministry’s Central America Coordination Unit, said in a statement.
“The project, which will facilitate vehicular and pedestrian communications at the Central American level, will be financed with resources provided by the Yucatan Program (Mesoamerican Infrastructure Fund), which will provide non-reimbursable funds on the order of $10 million,” the ministry said. The remaining $5 million will be provided by Costa Rica, whose territory will house 62 percent of the project.
Source: Fox News Latino
Fitch Rates Panama’s USD 1B 2028 Global Bonds ‘BBB’
Earlier this month, Fitch Ratings assigned Panama a ‘BBB’ rating on their billion-dollar bond insurance, maturing as of March 17th, 2028. This gives Panama’s bonds a coupon rate of 3.875%, which should have a positive effect overall.
The rating is in line with Panama’s Long-term Foreign-currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of ‘BBB’.
RATING SENSITIVITIES
The rating would be sensitive to any changes in Panama’s Long-term Foreign-currency IDR. On Feb. 19, 2016, Fitch affirmed Panama’s Long-term Foreign-currency IDR at ‘BBB’ with a Stable Outlook
Source: BusinessWire.com
Republic of Panama sets IPTs on new 12-year bond issue
This past week, Panama set its initial price thoughts on its 12-year senior bond at Treasuries, showing signs of a growing sentiment towards Central and South America, and their bondholders.
Market participants have been anticipating the deal amid a rally in Latin American bonds, which encouraged The Province of Buenos Aires and Cemex to tap the primary market on Wednesday.
“Panama has been looming…we were starting to wonder what they were waiting for so they obviously pulled the trigger which is good,” said a syndicate banker. He put the new issue concession at around 30bp, working from Panama’s existing 2025s which were trading at a G-spread in the high 160bp area on Thursday morning.
Source: Reuters
Why Panama’s Beaches are perfect for people who want to relocate or retire in Panama
If you’re looking to relocate or retire in Panama, there are plenty of options available to you all over the country. One of the biggest draws, however, is the “playas” area, or “beach” area. And there are a few good reasons why. In our latest blog post, we look at why Panama’s beaches are perfect for people who want to relocate or retire in Panama.
Panama’s “Playas” region is located between an hour and an hour and a half away from Panama City. The region starts in the area of Punta Chame, and continues past the towns of Nueva Gorgona, Coronado, and stretching about 30 or so miles west to Rio Hato. Within this gorgeous, ocean-front strip of Panama lies every creature comfort of the big city (shopping centers, banks, gyms, grocery stores, entertainment), mixed with breathtaking Pacific views, and pristine beaches. In the Playas region, you get the laid back beach life, with a location close enough to the capital and airports to make getting in and out a cinch.
Continue reading about retiring to a Panama beach
