Panama’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, Julio Moltó, described as “positive news” the fact that the Central American country has been excluded from the new tariff imposed by the U.S. in place of the global 10% rate that expires this Friday and whose legal basis was annulled by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The new tariffs, ranging from 10% to 12.5%, went into effect at 12:01 a.m. this Friday against more than 80 countries that, according to Washington, lack effective laws to prevent the entry of goods produced with forced labor under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.
“Relationships of trust are also reflected in trade. As of July 24, Panama will no longer be subject to the additional 10% tariff, having not been included in the new measure” adopted by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR),
Moltó pictured above, stated in a message on X. This is “positive news that reaffirms the strong relationship of friendship and cooperation between Panama and the United States, and the commitment of both countries to continue strengthening their economic and trade ties,” added the head of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MICI).
The United States is Panama’s main trade and political ally, and the largest destination market for Panamanian exports.
A trade promotion agreement (TPA) in effect since 2012 immediately eliminated tariffs on more than 87% of U.S. imports of industrial and consumer goods to the Central American country, while the remainder have been phased out according to a set schedule. As for Panamanian exports, the U.S. eliminated 97% of tariffs on these from the outset under the TPA.
