Show Image: REUTERS/Carlos Jasso Peter VanhamDeputy Head of Media, World Economic Forum Geneva Stay up to date: Economic ProgressLicense and Republishing World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use. The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum. Global Agenda The Agenda WeeklyA weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda Trade Agreement Home • Key Facts • Your CommunityThe U.S. –Panama Trade Promotion Agreement (the “Agreement”) will support American jobs, expand markets and enhance U.S. competitiveness.
The Agreement will remove barriers to U.S. goods entering Panama’s market.
The Agreement is key to maintaining U.S. market share in this important market.
The Agreement provides significant infrastructure opportunities.
Other benefits of the Agreement Include: A Level Playing Field for U.S. Investors: The Agreement ensures that U.S. companies in Panama are protected against discriminatory or unlawful treatment, and provides a neutral and transparent mechanism for settlement of investment disputes. Greater Protection for Intellectual Property Rights:The Agreement provides for improved standards for the protection and enforcement of a broad range of intellectual property rights, which are consistent with both U.S. standards of protection and enforcement, and with the standards increasingly embraced by our trading partners. Such improvements include state-of-the-art protections for digital products such as software, music, text, and videos and stronger protections for patents, trademarks and test data, including an electronic system for the registration and maintenance of trademarks. Commitments to Protect Labor Rights and the Environment: The Agreement commits both Parties to adopt and maintain in their laws and practice the five fundamental labor rights as stated in the 1998 ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. Both Parties are also required to effectively enforce – and may not waive – labor laws related to fundamental labor rights. Both Parties also commit to effectively enforce their own domestic environmental laws and adopt, maintain, and implement laws, regulations, and all other measures to fulfill their obligations under covered multilateral environmental agreements. All obligations in the labor chapter and the environment chapter are subject to the same dispute settlement procedures and enforcement mechanisms as the Agreement’s commercial obligations. Fair and Open Government Procurement: Under the Agreement, U.S. suppliers are granted rights to non-discriminatory treatment in bidding on procurement by a broad range of Panamanian government ministries, agencies, regional governments, and public enterprises. For procurement covered by the Agreement, it requires the use of fair and transparent procurement procedures, such as advance notice of purchases and timely and effective bid review procedures.An Open and Competitive Telecommunications Market: Panama has agreed to a pro-competitive regulatory framework that builds upon the WTO Basic Telecommunications Reference Paper and guarantees competitive access to Panamanian telecom networks on reasonable and non-discriminatory terms. U.S. telecommunications companies are ensured the right to interconnect with Panamanian dominant carriers’ fixed networks at non-discriminatory and cost-based rates. New Opportunities for Agriculture: This agreement creates new opportunities for U.S. farmers, ranchers, workers, and food processors seeking to export to Panama, one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America. This comprehensive Agreement will eliminate tariffs and other barriers to U.S. exports, promote economic growth, and expand trade between our two countries. More Manufacturing Exports to Panama: The U.S.-Panama Trade Promotion Agreement creates new opportunities for U.S. manufacturers seeking to export to Panama, giving American manufacturers more market access in two ways: (1) by eliminating tariffs, or duties, charged when U.S. exports come into Panama, and (2) by laying out a framework to address other barriers to U.S. exports – including those that may arise in the future. Increased Textile Access for U.S. Apparel: This agreement opens new market access opportunities for U.S. textiles and apparel manufacturers and strengthens customs enforcement mechanisms to verify claims of origin and deny illegal customs circumvention. Upon entry into force of the Agreement, tariffs on U.S. textiles and apparel entering Panama that meet the Agreement’s rules of origin are eliminated. A Growing Service Market: Panama has a large and growing services market. Services account for roughly 77 percent of Panama’s $27 billion economy. Leading sectors include banking and insurance, health care, logistics and transportation services. Financial Services Benefits: The financial services chapter in this agreement provides extensive market access into Panama for American financial services firms – supplementing and modifying the Agreement’s rules on investment and services without undermining the right of U.S. financial regulators to take action to ensure the integrity and stability of financial markets or address a financial crisis. Importantly, Panama commits to treat U.S. financial institutions comparably to their competitors in the Panamanian market. What are 3 benefits of the Panama Canal?3 ways the expansion of the Panama Canal will affect global trade. Job creation. The fact that the existing Panama Canal can only fit smaller ships is a limiting factor in global trade. ... . Major supply chain infrastructure development. ... . Substantial increases in business between Atlantic and Pacific nations.. What are 2 benefits of the Panama Canal?The Panama route enhances environmental contribution by reducing GHG emissions on the planet with more efficient transport, reducing fuel consumption per cargo unit and fewer emissions than other routes that combine transportation by land.
How does the Panama Canal benefit Central America?Panama Canal impact on the regions
It has allowed the transit of mega-ships such as Neo and Post Panamax vessels to increase container throughput (TEUs) and Cargo tonnage at ports within the region.
Does US still benefit from Panama Canal?The United States remains the top user of the Canal—in 2019, 66 percent of the cargo traffic transiting the Canal began or ended its journey at a U.S. port; cargo from or destined to China made up 13 percent of Canal traffic.
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