The Cabinet Council approved Cabinet Resolution No. 122 on October 20, 2026, published in Official Gazette No. 30646 of October 30, 2026. The resolution authorizes the Minister of Commerce and Industries, Julio Moltó Alain, to propose to the National Assembly the bill approving the Protocol of Accession of the Republic of Guatemala to the Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Korea and the Republics of Central America.

Its article 1 contains the authorization; article 2 orders an authenticated copy to be sent to the minister so he can proceed, and article 3 provides that the resolution takes effect upon promulgation. The recitals state that the minister presented the bill at the Cabinet Council session held that same day and cite numeral 9 of article 184 of the Constitution, under which international treaties and agreements entered into by the Executive are submitted to the Legislative Branch for consideration. As its legal basis, the resolution also invokes Law 182 of November 19, 2020.

That law approved for Panama the Free Trade Agreement between the Republic of Korea and the Republics of Central America, signed in Seoul on February 21, 2018. The protocol now headed to the Assembly seeks to incorporate Guatemala as a party to that same agreement. The resolution does not reproduce the text of the protocol or detail its terms, tariff phase-out schedules or rules specific to Guatemala.

For Panamanian exporters, importers and logistics companies doing business with Korea or Guatemala, the accession would expand the trade area covered by a single agreement. That could ease regional supply chains using common rules between the Central American countries and Korea, and bring more predictability to re-export and distribution operations that pass through Panama. The concrete scope will, however, depend on the terms of the protocol and its entry into force.

The effect is not immediate. The bill must be submitted to the National Assembly, assigned to the relevant committee and pass the required debates before being signed and published as law. After that, the protocol's entry into force for Panama will depend on what its own text provides. Nexo Capital will follow the submission of the bill and its legislative process.

Research assisted by Sentinel, with editorial verification of official sources. Discover Legislat.ai