The World Bank expects Panama's economy to grow this year by 9.9%, making it one of the countries in the region with the highest growth in 2021, after having experienced the greatest decline in continental Latin America in 2020, with a drop of 17.9%.
Only Guyana would experience higher growth in 2021 (20.9%) and after Panama, the performance of Peru (8.1%) stands out, which also suffered a strong economical fall in 2020.
The World Bank presented its updated growth forecasts for the region on Monday, March 29.
The Washington-based body noted that "Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) suffered more damage to health and the economy from the
Covid-19 pandemic than any other region."
The gross domestic product (GDP) in Latin America and the Caribbean (except Venezuela) fell by 6.7% in 2020, while for 2021 a return to growth of 4.4% is expected.