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    "localId": "486500486",
    "label": "Report, Central Intelligence Agency, Panama, Situation Report 26",
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    "id": "486500486",
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    "contentType": "document",
    "title": "Report, Central Intelligence Agency, Panama, Situation Report 26",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/486500486",
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        "President's Secretary's Files (Truman Administration)",
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    "productionDates": [
        {
            "logicalDate": "1948-03-01",
            "month": 3,
            "year": 1948
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{
    "seq": 23,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "photo",
    "url": "https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/presidential-libraries/truman/hst-psf/602196/875510/875510-01-023.tif",
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    "ocrText": "purchaser of bananas from private growers in the Provinces of Colón, Panama, and the\nCanal Zone.\nCacao is produced primarily for export although a small percentage is processed\nlocally. For the period 1942-45, exports totaled 6.8 thousand metric tons.\nPanama's natural resources are virtually undeveloped and to a large extent\nunknown. The Province of Darién is reputedly rich in gold, silver, and copper deposits,\nand from time to time private companies have been organized to explore and develop\nthem. Limited capitalization, inadequate transportation facilities, disease, and inabil-\nity to find profitable ore deposits caused all these companies to fail. In 1939 gold was\nmined in the amount of $105,000, along with well-nigh negligible quantities of silver,\ncopper, and manganese.\nPanama has extensive forest resources, which, if developed, would enable the\ncountry to market more than fifty species of commercially valuable cabinet, building,\nand dye woods. Transport difficulties have been a determining factor to date in pre-\nventing their successful exploitation.\nThe waters adjacent to the Republic abound in edible fish, but here also develop-\nment up to the present time has been on a small scale. The country's pearl-fishing\nindustry and its mother-of-pearl industry both make a small contribution to the\nnational income.\nNeither crude oil nor asphalt is produced in Panama. The Sinclair Oil Company\nis, however, now engaged (under a government concession) in exploring for possible\noil resources. The country has no petroleum refineries and chooses rather to depend\non the Canal Zone distribution facilities for its supplies of petroleum products.\nPanama's industrial potential is limited by its small population, its scant purchas-\ning power, its limited natural resources, its continuing capital famine, and its inade-\nquate and relatively expensive transportation facilities. In 1943 less than 2 percent of\nthe population was engaged in industry, and no significant new industrial development\ntook place during the war.\nIndustrial development has proceeded slowly in Panama, and up to the present has\nbeen largely confined to the production of light consumers' goods in small factories or\nshops. Thus manufacturing industries play a minor role in the national economy.\nThe largest of the enterprises are those that produce electric power, alcoholic beverages,\nsoft drinks, foodstuffs, and, recently, soap. Other significant manufactures are cloth-\ning, ceramic products, wood products, leather and leather products, chemicals, and\ncement. Practically all manufacturing takes place in Panama City, Colón, and David,\nwith the greatest concentration in Panama City.\nWith the exception of electric power, alcoholic beverages, sugar, and possibly soap,\nPanama is unable to satisfy its domestic industrial needs. It has no significant indus-\ntries that could be converted to important wartime uses. Because of its limited indus-\ntrial productivity, it is not an important market for foreign raw materials. It will\nremain for some time at least an important source of bananas, and also, to a limited\nextent, coconuts and abaca fiber.\nThe per capita national income for Panama was estimated in 1945 at $190.00.\nThis compares favorably with that of Panama's neighbors, but it should be noticed that\nSECRET\nII-2"
}