Panama’s next president to face growing fiscal challenge

José Raúl Mulino, the front-runner in Panama’s presidential election scheduled for Sunday, has pledged to reinvigorate growth. But as we’ve been arguing for some time, the economy’s time as Latin America’s growth star is coming to an end. If anything, post-election fiscal measures to try to lift GDP growth could worsen what’s likely to be a steady deterioration in the public debt position and hasten the loss of the country’s coveted investment grade rating.