Panama and Costa Rica are seeking to move forward with a solution to the trade dispute that has persisted since 2019 and facilitate the transport of goods between the two countries. The Panamanian government confirmed this Thursday that it has received and is evaluating the proposal presented by San José on August 5, which includes two parallel agreements and arbitration by the World Trade Organization (WTO) to resolve a dispute that has remained unresolved for more than seven years.
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Panama’s Minister of Commerce and Industries, Julio Moltó, confirmed during a meeting with Costa Rica’s Minister of Foreign Trade, Indiana Trejos, that the Panamanian government is analyzing the proposal.
“We have received the proposal presented by Costa Rica and it will be evaluated with due technical, commercial, and legal depth. Panama will continue to conduct this process with firmness, respect, and a vision of mutual benefit,” Moltó stated at the first bilateral meeting since the start of Laura Fernández Delgado’s administration.
The Costa Rican proposal aims to definitively resolve the trade differences through two parallel agreements. The first is a memorandum of understanding that would address Panama’s concerns regarding products of interest to its exporters, with the support of an international body that fosters confidence in the process.
The second instrument would commit both governments to WTO arbitration to examine Panama’s appeal against the ruling that condemned the restrictions imposed on Costa Rican products. Both countries would commit to respecting the outcome of the international arbitrators, thus circumventing the inoperability of the WTO Appellate Body, which has been paralyzed since December 2019.
Panamá pidió más tiempo para analizar la propuesta de Costa Rica con la que ambos países buscan resolver una disputa comercial vigente desde 2019.https://t.co/ViaGtD2uSQ
— Forbes Centroamérica (@Forbes_CA) August 12, 2026
The text reads, “Panama asked for more time to analyze Costa Rica’s proposal, with which both countries seek to resolve a trade dispute that has been ongoing since 2019.”
Origin of the Panama-Costa Rica Trade Dispute
The trade dispute between Panama and Costa Rica originated in January 2019, when Panama adopted measures that restricted access for Costa Rican bananas, plantains, strawberries, pineapples, beef, chicken, pork, and dairy products. According to WTO records, the dispute centers on four specific measures adopted between January 2019 and June 2020, related to phytosanitary restrictions and the non-renewal of sanitary approvals.
Costa Rica initiated litigation before the WTO in 2021. In December 2024, a panel issued an award in favor of San José, which was ratified in June 2025. Panama appealed on January 24, 2025, but the lack of members on the Appellate Body left the process in legal limbo.
Moltó has reiterated that Panama is willing to negotiate under conditions of equality and strict reciprocity, with protection for domestic producers. “We want the same set of rules for both nations,” the minister stated, noting that there are Panamanian plants that exported to Costa Rica for decades but are currently unable to do so. “Our productive sector also deserves respect. We will protect it,” he affirmed.
For his part, the president of the Panamanian Industrial Union (SIP), Rosmer Jurado, pointed out that the private sector faces a “clearly unfavorable” trade relationship with Costa Rica. In 2025, Panama registered exports to that country of $41.4 million compared to imports of $458.1 million, representing a trade deficit of over $416 million and a ratio of approximately 10 to 1 in favor of Costa Rica.
Jurado considered any mechanism that addresses the differences through dialogue to be positive, although he stressed that any eventual arbitration should help to remove the barriers that limit access for Panamanian products to the Costa Rican market and foster a more reciprocal relationship.
The central point, he maintained, is that any solution must preserve Panama’s interests and allow producers to compete under fair and predictable conditions.
The discussion about the Costa Rican proposal thus incorporates a dimension that transcends the dispute before the WTO: the challenge of correcting a trade relationship that the Panamanian private sector considers unbalanced.
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