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PRESS/TPRB/287 
17 September 2007 
 
(07-3855) 
TRADE POLICY REVIEW: PANAMA 
A generally liberal trade regime ; further reforms would help 
maintain growth 
Panama maintains an essentially liberal trade and investment regime, characterized by relatively 
low tariffs and few non-tariff barriers, which is in consonance with the vital role that trade plays in 
Panama’s economy according to a WTO Secretariat report on the trade policies and practices of 
Panama. 
 Panama’s service-oriented economy acts as an international hub for activities such as maritime 
transport, distribution services, and banking. In contrast, the production of a number of 
agricultural and manufactured goods receives assistance through border protection and fiscal incentives, some contingent upon exportation.  
 
According to the report, undertaking further reforms such as the rationalization of assistance programmes and the simplification of  the trade regime, particularly the tariff structure, would help 
Panama to build on its comparative advantage as a supplier of international services, notably 
transportation through the Canal, and sustain the robust economic growth achieved in recent years. 
 
The WTO report, along with a policy statement by the Government of Panama, will be the basis for 
the first TPR of Panama by the Trade Policy Review Body of the WTO on 17 and 19 September 
2007. 
 The following documents are available in MS Wo rd format on the WTO web-site. They can be 
downloaded at http://www.wto.org/english/ tratop_e/tpr_e/tp287_e.htm  
 • Secretariat report 
> Contents and summary observations  
> Economic environment  > Trade and investment regimes  
> Trade policies and practices by measure  
> Trade policies by sector  > Appendix tables  
• Report by the Government of Panama PRESS/TPRB/287 
Page 2 of 2 
 
 
 • Chairperson’s concluding remarks  
• Minutes of the meeting (available appr oximately six weeks after the meeting). 
Note 
Trade Policy Reviews are an exercise, mandated in the WTO agreements, in which member 
countries’ trade and related policies are examined and evaluated at regular intervals. Significant 
developments that may have an impact on the global trading system are also monitored. For each review, two documents are prepared: a policy stat ement by the government of the member under 
review, and a detailed report written independently by the WTO Secretariat. These two documents 
are then discussed by the WTO’s full membership in  the Trade Policy Review Body (TPRB). These 
documents and the proceedings of the TPRB’s meetings are published shortly afterwards.  
 
Print copies of the TPR publications are available for sale from the WTO Secretariat, Centre William Rappard, 154 rue de Lausanne, 1211 Genève 21 and through the on-line bookshop at 
https://secure.vtx.ch/shop/boutiques/wto_index_boutique.html  or follow this path :  
www.wto.org >resources > publications > trade policy reviews   
The TPR publications are also available from our co-publisher Bernan Press , 4611-F Assembly 
Drive, Lanham, MD 20706-4391, United States 
Next reviews: 
Gabon/Cameroon: 1 and 3 October 2007 
Peru:  17 and 19 October 2007 
Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS): 5 and 7 November 2007 
 
For a full list of previous trade policy reviews and the full programme of future reviews go to 
http://www.wto.org/english/trat op_e/tpr_e/tpr_ e.htm#reviews 
or follow this path : www.wto.org > trade topics > trade policy reviews 
  
 
END