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Whilst fishing contracted in 2010 for the second consecutive year (41.2%), the sharpest contraction for the period had been 3.7% in 2009 and 21.2% in 2011. This activity was affected by adverse weather conditions, increased operating costs stemming from the high price of petroleum products, the necessary restrictions and closed seasons to protect aquatic resources and the restriction placed on longline fishing (rope lines) at the end of that year. (…)

(…) The growth of capital expenditure reflects the implementation of an ambitious public investment programme which includes infrastructure works such as the clean-up of Panama Bay, the expansion of the coastal belt, the construction of freeways and the Panama City metro.(…)

The SICA (Central American Integration System) is a multidisciplinary integration scheme comprising five subsystems: environmental, economic, educational and cultural, political and social. (…)

The Agreement between Panama and Canada, which entered into force on 1 April 2013, contains provisions on goods (rules of origin, customs procedures, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, emergency measures) and on services (investment, cross border trade in services, telecommunications, financial services, temporary entry of business people), and on competition policy, monopolies and State owned enterprises, and government procurement. It also contains provisions on e commerce, trade related cooperation, dispute settlement and trade facilitation, and two parallel agreements on the environment and labour.

(…) Moreover, since 1 September 2013, a 15% ITBMS (Tax on the Transfer of Movable Property and the Provision of Services) % has applied to pure ethyl alcohol and absolute alcohol to be used to produce fuel. The tax on fuel consumption for petrol and diesel fuel containing bioethanol has also been increased.

In fact, Law No. 76 of 21 October 2013 set the ICCDP (Consumption Tax on Petroleum-Derived Fuels) at a rate of B 3.78 per gallon for petrol (HS 2710.12.19) mixed with anhydrous bioethanol of foreign origin and B 1.58 per gallon for petrol mixed with biodiesel of foreign origin. At the same time, a B 0.57 lower rate per gallon was set for petrol mixed with 5% of anhydrous bioethanol produced using domestic raw materials, the rate being reduced in line with the increase in bioethanol content. Payment of this tax was made retroactive to 1 September 2013, the date on which it became mandatory to use 5% of bioethanol in 91 and 95 octane petrol in Panama. According to statements by the authorities, this variable rate is intended to protect domestic production of sugar cane used to produce bioethanol. Likewise, in October 2013, the structure of the National Import Tariff was modified in order to differentiate imports of pure ethyl alcohol and absolute alcohol to be used to produce biofuels from those used to prepare other products, and the tariff was raised from 15% to 30%.

(…) The tax base is the gallon and the rate varies depending on the product and, for petroleum since September 2013, on the source of the bioethanol or biodiesel with which it is mixed (Table 3.4).

Table 3.4 Consumption tax on fuels and petroleum products
Product; Rate (B per gallon)
Petrol, 91 and 95 octane, unleaded;
with 5% of anhydrous bioethanol of foreign origin; 3.78
with 5% of anhydrous bioethanol of domestic origin; 0.57
with 7% of anhydrous bioethanol of domestic origin: 0.56
with 10% of anhydrous bioethanol of domestic origin: 0.54
Product; Rate (B per gallon)
Petrol mixed with biodiesel of foreign origin;1.58

(…) Moreover, Law No. 76 of 21 October 2013 imposes an import tax on fuels blended with bio ethanol of foreign provenance (section 3.2.5). (…)

Panama imposes import prohibitions and restrictions for health, safety, environmental, sanitary and phytosanitary reasons. (…)