Another St. Thomas?

Is the handwriting on the wall for Panama?   Is Royal Caribbean homeporting a major cruise ship in Panama the shape of things to come?  Until the US normalizes relationships with Cuba, at which time you will see a major exodus of cruise ships from Miami to Cuba, Panama seems ripe for the development of cruise ship tourism.  So here comes the plague of ports, “Diamonds International” – sorry ladies.

Panama Diamond Exchange joins WFDB
May 20, 2008 – As gateway to Latin American market, country aims to be major jewelry player

Shanghai, China—The World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) has accepted the Panama Diamond Exchange (PDE) into its membership ranks.

The PDE, which joins exchanges from Turkey and Australia as the newest WFDB members, gained acceptance into the bourse on May 17, the final day of the 33rd World Diamond Congress held in Shanghai, China.

According to a presentation by PDE President Erez Akerman, the PDE opened in early 2006 and is seen as a gateway to and from Latin America, which includes South and Central America, and also as a means of reaching the islands of the Caribbean.

This area, he said, is home to about 700 million people and 11,500 jewelry stores in 20 countries and 23 Caribbean islands, which generate more than $7 billion a year in jewelry sales.

Akerman said in 2007, the country of Panama itself, which uses the U.S. dollar as its official currency, saw its economy grow 11 percent, a growth rate second only to China.

The government of Panama, led by President Martin Torrijos and Vice President Samuel Lewis Navarro, stands behind efforts to make Panama a player in the jewelry industry, Akerman said, including the construction of a 48-story tower in the heart of Panama City that will eventually house the PDE.

In addition, the area encompassing the PDE has permanent duty-free-zone status, eliminating taxes and duties on transactions conducted there.

“We consider our affiliated membership to the WFDB to be an essential component in our development, and we are fully aware that this is an important element in the Panama Diamond Exchange achieving international recognition,” Akerman said in a media release. “We are equally convinced that the Panama Diamond Exchange will be a valuable addition to the WFDB, for it will open to its bourses’ members the vast and largely untapped markets of Latin America.”

Along this same line, Matthew wrote about a new super world mall being developed midway between Colon and Panama City.

I actually heard of a company called PIMM that is building the largest merchandise mart (larger than Colon Free Zone) and they have the same benefits as a free zone but they are better located, around 1 hour closer to Panama City than colon. and of course its an area that is safe and not dirty!

The project is promising “6,800 showrooms, a convention center, 10 office blocks, on-site condominiums and four hotels soon to be constructed between to City of Colon and Panama City, PIMM will be the largest international merchandise mart in the world.”

However, of the 6,800 showrooms, the cruise excursion bus will only stop at one little hole-in-the-wall offering “recommended” shopping!

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Hang it up Hillary!

Gee Hillary, don’t you know when it’s over? Hang it up. Get a life. Your lack of judgement in being able to know when to stop beating a dead horse calls into question your judgement as a CEO, to put it in your “hiring question” terms. Keep pushing and you will guarantee the Democrats will loose. The Democratic party has an unrivaled record of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory and this endless charade is weakening the party and the chance of victory in November.

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My new photography blog – www.BeautifulPanama.wordpress.com

I am a very amateur photographer, but I enjoy taking pictures.  WordPress has come up with a new blog format and design which is very condusive to displaying photographs, so I have decided to use it as a vehicle to share some of my favorite shots of Panama, as well as some of my travels.  Check it out!