Free-Trade Talks
Colombia has begun free-trade talks with Panama to boost business with its neighbor to the north. The talks come as Colombia’s exports to Venezuela are expected to fall by as much as two-thirds this year to $1.5 billion due to a lingering recession in Venezuela and vows by President Hugo Chavez to cut imports from the Andean country. Trade between Panama and Colombia totaled only $211 million in 2007, the latest year that statistics are available.
