March and April are critical months for ocean carriers looking to ink annual freight contracts with shippers, including the world’s biggest retailers, but this year contract season is turning into a waiting game. The $2,500 spread between spot market rates and long-term freight contract rates for Asia to U.S. West Coast containers has reached its … Read more
PANAMA CITY — Panama’s former President Ricardo Martinelli has received political asylum from Nicaragua days after Panama’s Supreme Court denied his appeal over a money laundering conviction that carried a 10-year sentence. Martinelli’s attorney Shirley Castañeda said outside the Nicaraguan embassy Wednesday that “his political asylum had already been granted.” Asked why Martinelli had requested … Read more
PANAMA CITY — A Roman Catholic cardinal disappeared this week in western Panama near the border with Costa Rica and investigators are searching for the missing cleric, authorities announced Thursday. Prosecutors in the state of Chiriqui said they opened an investigation Wednesday, a day after Spanish Cardinal José Luis Lacunza was last seen. Lacunza, 79, … Read more
PANAMA CITY — A severe drought that began last year has forced authorities to slash ship crossings by 36% in the Panama Canal, one of the world’s most important trade routes. The new cuts announced Wednesday by authorities in Panama are set to deal an even greater economic blow than previously expected. Canal administrators now … Read more
View of stranded boats at Alhajuela Lake during the summer drought, in Colon province, 50 km north of Panama City, Panama, on April 21, 2023. The Alhajuela lake is one of the main lakes that supplies water to the locks of the Panama Canal and is at its lowest level of recent years. Luis Acosta … Read more
Tired of the usual sights or craving a break from the travel herd? These five travel spots may be the getaway you’re looking for. Adventure travel company Intrepid Travel’s new “Not Hot” list is out — spotlighting overlooked travel spots around the world. The company’s annual list attempts to combat overtourism by helping travelers “beat … Read more
PANAMA CITY — Canada’s First Quantum Minerals Ltd. announced Friday it has requested arbitration proceedings to fight a Panamanian decision to halt a major open-pit copper mine concession in Panama or obtain damages. First Quantum said one arbitration was requested under the Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement. It has also started proceedings before the International Court … Read more
MEXICO CITY — Indigenous anti-mining protesters that have paralyzed Panama’s key roadways for weeks said they will temporarily suspend blockades for 12 hours Monday as a show of good faith to citizens affected by the demonstrations. Demonstrators are demanding the Panamanian government annul a contract allowing the Canadian mining company First Quantum Minerals to continue … Read more
A 77-year-old man shot dead two environmental protesters on Wednesday in an apparent outburst of rage over a roadblock in Panama. The gunman was named in local media as Kenneth Franklin Darlington Salas. If he is convicted, Mr Salas could be sentenced to house arrest rather than being sent to jail because of his age. … Read more
Comment on this storyCommentAdd to your saved storiesSave PANAMA CITY — On the surface, the protests that have shaken Panama the past two weeks are about a government contract that allows a Canadian company to expand its copper mining operations here. But what’s at stake, all sides say, is a much larger question: What kind … Read more