Economy & Business - January 2004

The ruling party's candidate for this year's presidential elections, José Miguel Alemán, reckons that it should be possible to kick growth up to 6% a year. He is also promising to cut unemployment to 8%. The current unemployment rate is between 12% and 14%, the government admits. 

The growth rate in 2003 was around 3.5%. The construction sector had a good year. This was due to an increase in the number of projects underway. Among the most important was the second bridge over the canal. 

Alemán is lagging in the opinion polls for the elections, due on 2 May. He is running third or fourth. Martí­n Torrijos, from the opposition Partido Revolucionario Democrático is well ahead and is followed by a former president, Guillermo Endara, from the Partido Solidaridad. The other candidate is Ricardo Martinelli, from Cambio Democrático. 

Alemán said that the country was well-placed to benefit from the pick-up in the US economy. He said that his party, if it won, would push for a modernisation of the Canal and would promote agriculture. 

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