Panama and China explore investment and development opportunities

The President of the Republic, José Raúl Mulino, met this morning with the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in Panama, Xu Xueyuan, to learn about the interest that Chinese companies have in making investments in various sectors within the Isthmus, and also to boost Panamanian exports to the Asian giant.
The meeting took place at the Presidency of the Republic, with the participation of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs (Javier Martínez-Acha) and of Commerce and Industries (Julio Moltó).
The Chinese ambassador recognized that Panama, with its strategic location and its interoceanic canal, represents a key platform for its economic development.
China’s investment interests focus on the logistics and infrastructure sectors; renewable energy and green technology; tourism; real estate development; telecommunications; and agricultural.
There is interest from Chinese companies to expand in the ports and logistics areas of the Caribbean and the Pacific. Other companies are looking to invest in clean energy projects, such as wind and solar.
The possibility of building real estate projects in Panama aimed at luxury and business tourism is within Chinese interests. This even implies the development of smart cities, connected with 5G networks.
The Panamanian agricultural sector also offers opportunities for Chinese investments, especially in the production and export of agricultural products such as bananas, pineapple, cocoa and coffee.
Currently, about 40 Chinese companies operate in Panama, in sectors such as finance, telecommunications and logistics, and many of them in the Colón Free Zone.
In addition, China is the second largest user of the Panama Canal, representing 21.4% of the cargo that transits through this sea route.