While people in the US complain that gas prices are horrendous at an average of $3.55 per gallon, try $4.30 per gallon. But since the inflation rate leaves gas and food off the index, I guess that it not hurting anyone back there. It will here, but in Panama most of the population takes mass transit primarily buses so the impact will be felt most in the increase in food and cost of goods that must be transported. I can remember owning tow gas hogs back in the US where we share a 4 cylinder turbo-charged inter cooled diesel SUV that runs on about 30 miles per gallon and we don’t drive far in our little town of Boquete so I put maybe $35 in the tank every two weeks.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) warned last week about the impact of rising oil and food inflation rates of the Central American countries.
This week fuel soared in most of the region, and 95 octane gasoline exceeded, on average, $ 4.30 a gallon (3.8 liters)
Central America faces an escalation in fuel prices that punish the pockets of consumers, threatening to trigger inflation and raises the challenge of finding alternative energy to end dependence on oil imports.
This week fuel soared in most of the region, and 95 octane gasoline exceeded, on average, $ 4.30 a gallon (3.8 liters), which made many recall levels of about $ 5 gallon achieved during the international crisis of 2008.
Analysts polled by Efe warned today that the upward trend of oil and its products will not only maintain the current crisis in Arab countries, and the resulting speculation in the prices of a barrel-but also by structural factors in the global oil industry , which has been facing increasing costs and problems at the refinery.
“That makes the barrels available are very precious and Central America, which is clearly importing must opt ??for the same firms that industrialized countries in a bid uneven because it has the same financial capacity” they said Juan Carlos Sosa, Venezuelan oil expert and editor of the journal Oil YV.
The situation is complicated by nearby producers like Venezuela and Mexico have seen impair its pumping for various reasons, and can no longer be allocated to Central surplus barrels previously available, the analyst said in an interview with Efe.
According to Sosa, the picture should be an incentive to Central America to “find a replacement for gasoline and other fuels, and choose to develop alternative energy projects like wind, solar and water.
The increase of fuel prices in Central impacts both the transport and services such as electricity, since the generation depends largely on thermal sources.
The Governments of the region in general have ruled out a fuel subsidy, and by countries such as Honduras, the state-run National Electricity Company (ENEE) has announced that studies a setting in their rates.
Moreover, the Government of Nicaragua announced this week that will keep “as long as necessary” an electricity subsidy will benefit at least 638,000 poor families and other 118,000 of the middle and upper classes.
In Panama, the Industrial Union President John Kiener, said that his country the increase in fuel prices “will have an impact on electricity rates in the second half of the year,” and predicted that “will be substantial” .
In addition, Kiener said Efe, “they will raise rates on raw materials” and “cost of distribution”, to which we must add the “increase in international markets” in food prices as wheat , soybean, corn, meat and oil. “
“As a result, we think this year will inflation in food and many other essential items,” said the Panamanian business leader.
The Central American countries in 2010 recorded a single-digit inflation, from 2.13% in El Salvador, the youngest, and 9.23% in Nicaragua, the highest.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) warned last week about the impact of rising oil and food inflation rates of the Central American countries and its economic growth.
The IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno, called “contain the inflationary pressures that began to manifest in the second half of 2010” because “the price of oil and food commodities increased significantly and is expected to trend upwards is maintained. “
“It’s hard to say how it will impact” on the Central American economies that situation, Moreno said, and stressed that curbing inflation should be part of an “agenda to allow the conversion and integration” of Central America and the Dominican Republic with emerging markets more dynamic. “
As part of the XXV Meeting of Governors of the Central American Isthmus and the Dominican Republic, held in Honduras last week, the IDB President said the region has “good” economic outlook for this year, although he reiterated, must face the threat of inflation .
“The region’s economic prospects are good (…) we have an area of ??growth should continue in much the pace of the previous year, when the Central American countries increased moderately, with Panama in the lead with a rebound of 7.5% Gross Domestic Product (GDP), according to official data of the country.