Archive for August, 2008
Monday, August 18th, 2008
The Bank of Inter-American Development (BID) agreed to lend Costa Rica $850 million to build or improve roads, bicycle paths, the new international airport in the Costa Rican South Pacific, and the Metropolitan Electric Railroad, among other works. The loan has to be approved by the congressional, a fact that prompted president Oscar Arias to request from the deputies to the Legislative Assembly to approve it at the soonest possible. He pointed out that the country has waited for a long time to improve infrastructure, thus the opportunity has to be take proper advantage of. The Government of Costa Rica has to supplement the loan with a $200-million counterpart, thus taking the overall amount to $1,050 million. The first installment, for $300 million and $75 million as the Costa Rican counterpart, would be used to improve 500 kilometers of roads.
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Monday, August 18th, 2008
If you thought that gasoline prices in Costa Rica would be dropping anytime soon, given the drop in the price of crude oil on international markets, you would be wrong.
According to the Autoridad Reguladora de los Servicios Públicos (Aresep) – the regulator of public prices and services – the method used to fix gasoline prices is once a month.
The director energey of the Aresep, Álvaro Barrantes , explained that the method to adjust gasoline prices is based on the international price and the exchange rate, however, there is a gap.
Gasoline price adjustments can only be made every second Friday of the month and it uses the average price of crude for the past 30 days. So, when the Aresep gives its approval following the second Friday request it does not reflect the crude oil price at the moment, but of days previous.
Complicating matters is the time the Aresep needs to analyze the request, taking into account a public consultation, which can take up to a month.
“The prices we have today has a gap of one or two months with respect to the international market”, said Barrantes.
Currently the Aresep is studying the latest request made by the State refinery, RECOPE, on August 11 asking for a drop of ¢1 colon for a litre of super, ¢5 for regular and ¢3 for diesel. In addition, the regulator is analyzing an increase of the tax on fuels of ¢5 colones for a litre of super, ¢5 for regular and ¢3 for diesel.
Many feel that that request is a joke, mocking Costa Ricans who have seen record fuel prices this year, when prices have been falling in other countries.
Currently, a litre of super gasoline sells for ¢732 colones; regular ¢721; and diesel ¢726.
Gasoline prices in Costa Rica are uniform across the country, even though in Guanacaste and Puntarenas regular gasoline is being sold with a mixture of ethanol.
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Monday, August 18th, 2008
According to a study done by Mercer in 2008, Costa Rica occupies the position 139 in the rankings of global cost of living. The aspects evaluated were the following: food, transportation, clothing, household durable goods, cost of housing and entertainment. Even though the cost of living in Costa Rica is substantially lower than that on the United States, it´s the highest is the Central American isthmus, this, according to the Central American Council of Consumer Protection.
The Costa Rican government recognized that they are going through difficult times due to the increments of the oil prices and the food crisis. The cost of living augmentations made Costa Rica face, in the last trimester of this year, the highest inflation levels in the last 12 years.
The prices are not going down anytime soon. The cost of living in Costa Rica is forcing many low/middle class people to modify their meals and the way they live life. Some “ticos” claim they are barely eating chicken or “olla de carne” anymore.
However, there are ways to overcome the situation, such as understanding and planning your expenses, buying only necessary things, turning off the lights you are not using, among others; learning how to live cheap is a skill that can be developed and hopefully enforced.
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Monday, August 18th, 2008
As Costa Rica became one of the preferred destinations for vacation homes it has also witnessed a significant deterioration of its natural resources in exchange for economic growth.
If you are about to select an exotic real estate development in Costa Rica as the ideal vacation home, please double check the information you have, make sure you obtain a professional opinion from an expert in the field. Currently the Costa Rican Environmental Tribunal or TAA (acronym for its Spanish name Tribunal Administrativo Ambiental) has investigated 40 real estate developments located all across Costa Rica, the results were alarming: 8 closed, 19 paralized and 13 are currently under investigations.
Costa Rica Real Estate Law is almost a science, it requires multiple bureacratic procedures, extensive lobbying and inside collaboration, as the most common practice is that if the environmental permits are not prepared through the consultation of an officer of the environmental agency, the chances are that your project will never get them.
To add extra drama to the chaotic permit application process, now various projects that obtained construction permits will have to suffer of a new degree of uncertainty as their permits will be investigated, raising the question of the level of transparency of government decisions in Costa Rica.
So if you are planning to invest in Costa Rica, make sure that you are provided of a clear, binding agreement by a reputable developer and that your legal counsel approves it.
In our opinion, the implementation of the TAA should have been done 10 years ago, it is still not to late, the real estate development industry will suffer for a period of time but in the long term Costa Rica will move towards a better version of sustainable development that will contribute with our global environment.
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Friday, August 15th, 2008
An earthquake of from 5.6 to 6.0 intesity took place about 4:55 p.m. Thursday off the coast of Panamá in the Pacific Ocean. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was about 77 miles south of David, Panamá. It was about 100 miles southeast of the tip of the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica.
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Friday, August 15th, 2008
Flower vendors could not keep up with demand yesterday as the giving of flowers, mainly roses, is a tradition on Mother’s Day.
Florists and flower kiosks on Avenida Central will be open today. As well, street vendors will be out in full force to meet the demand.
Of course, the price of flowers is much higher today than at the beginning of the week. A rose is going for as much as ¢1.500 colones, three roses for ¢3.000, a half dozen for ¢5.000. The prices are at least a 1/3 higher that at the beginning of the week.
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Friday, August 15th, 2008
Costa Rica has a great tourist industry. They are welcoming and friendly and in most cases they are honest and genuine. But human nature being what it is, sometimes we end up getting less than we bargained for. The following are just a few tips on what to look out for before you pay out of pocket.
In most cities these days, when the local cops aren’t busy they park in a discreet spot and scrutinize drivers to see if they can catch them in an infraction. One person I read about got stopped for speeding and the cops told him that it was an expensive ticket. The cop told them that for $100 he would look the other way. Later he was told that he could have settled the ticket at any Bank of Costa Rica. (more…)
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Friday, August 15th, 2008
San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica, is a city of about 400,000 inhabitants. While it may lack the flashiness and glamor of other Latin American capital cities, San Jose exudes an aura of genuineness and warmth. In this humble city, you will not find an abundance of fancy shopping centers, ornate architecture or showy monuments and statutes. At its basic core, San Jose is a workingman’s town, a little rough around the edges but comfortable like a snug coat.
To really get a feel for Costa Rica’s capital city, I suggest that you go sometime around noon to the city’s Central Park located at the end of Paseo Colon, one block East of 2nd avenue – you’ll see a cross section of businessman on their lunch break, tourists enjoying the pleasant spring like weather, performing musicians and mimes as well as artists and craftsman selling their wares. Unlike other Latin American cities, you’ll encounter very little begging. Surrounding the plaza are a number of outdoor cafes, where you can sit down and enjoy a strong cup of coffee or espresso while you take in the Pura Vida vibes of Costa Rica.
If you want to see fancy boutiques, trendy restaurants and bars, I suggest that you spend some time in San José’s upscale suburb of Escazu. This is the stomping ground of the ‘Gente Plastico’ and highbrow expatriates.
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Thursday, August 14th, 2008
Retailers cashing in on what could be called the most important retail period, second to Christmas, with offers to attract customers. Although retailers have been quite satisfied with sales this Mother’s day, they still expect better sales figures today and tomorrow.
All banks, government offices and agencies, professional offices and most businesses will be closed tomorrow as Mother’s Day is a legal holiday.
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Thursday, August 14th, 2008
In February 2008 , Norway, New Zealand, Iceland and Costa Rica made a commitment to go carbon neutral.
The tiny Central American country is the only developing country to have made the tough pledge to turn its economy green.
It has also set itself the hardest target with the government saying it will go carbon neutral by 2021.
“If any country can do it, it’s Costa Rica,” said Sergio Musmanni, who is helping to lead the government’s new national climate change strategy. (more…)
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Thursday, August 14th, 2008
Costa Rica, which currently sits on the United Nations Security Council, rejected calls by the United States for a U.N. resolution condemning Russia for its attack on Georgia. Accusing Georgia of attacking civilians in the separatist province of South Ossetia, Russia began rolling troops into Georgia on Friday.
A condemnation seems inappropriate to us when Georgia started the hostilities, Foreign Minister Bruno Stagno told The Tico Times.
Still, he added, Any incursion by Russia or another power beyond South Ossetia would be very unfortunate.
According to press reports, Russian troops have gone past South Ossetia, dropping bombs deep into Georgia.
Russian President Dmitiri Medvedev agreed yesterday to a cease-fire that would withdraw troops to the positions they occupied before fighting broke out Thursday. Still, newswires reported that violence in Georgia continued even after Medvedev’s announcement.
The conflict has again exposed the weakness of the U.N. Security Council, which met five times last weekend and Monday to try to end hostilities. Faced with a Russian veto, the council failed to reach an agreement by yesterday afternoon.
Stagno said he supported an end to the fighting under terms that respect Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, so that South Ossetia remains an autonomous province within Georgia.
He said Russian peacekeepers should remain in South Ossetia under a 1992 agreement by Russian, Georgian and South Ossetian authorities that gave the province effective autonomy. Stagno also suggested that the United Nations send a team to the region to ensure that all parties are respecting the cease-fire, South Ossetia’s autonomy and Georgia’s borders.
Long-simmering tensions in South Ossetia have been revived under Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili, a U.S. ally who has sought to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, to the chagrin of Moscow, which has given South Ossetians aid, military protection and even passports to the mostly pro-Russian population.
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Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
Costa Rica is the oldest democracy in Central and South America with the Pacific Ocean to the West and Caribbean to the East.
Costa Rica shares Central America with Panama, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Belize
It was the first country in the world to constitutionally abolish it’s army and is an American protectorate.
The economy has been growing at 7% pa, with major inward investment via big multinationals such as Hewlett Packard, Intel, Microsoft, Abbott Laboratories, Merck Sharpe and Dome
The population is 4 million, of which 96% are literate – one of the highest literacy rates in the world, with more teachers than police
5% of the worlds biodiversity can be found in Costa Rica (i.e. 1 in 20 of all living organisms), and NASA described it as having the best climate in the world – with average temperatures of 25-30 degrees
The country is ranked 5th – 2008 Environmental Performance Index with over 25% of Costa Rica declared a protected nature reserve
There is a $1.9 billion pa tourism industry, with many American celebrities choosing Costa Rica for their pad – such as Oprah Winfrey, Bruce Willis, Leonardo DiCaprio, Lisa Marie Presley.
Land prices in Costa Rica have shot up in recent years driven by
* massive demand from mainly American holiday makers looking for their little piece of paradise, in this beautiful stable country
* foregin inward investment from multinational companies
In the best areas land has doubled year on year over the past 5 years. Of course this land price has started from very low price levels, but these increases will not be sustained forever, so invest now and benefit from the land price increases while you can!!
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Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
Two ornithologists were attacked by a machete-wielding group while surveying birds in Costa Rica, reports National Geographic.
Dr. Cagan H. Sekercioglu and Dr. Jim Zook — both prominent bird experts — were apparently mistaken for thieves when looking for a Pacific Screech-owl in Liberia, Costa Rica.
Zook, who has lived in the Central American country for 30 years, suffered a cut hand from a machete and bruises after being pummeled by a mob of around ten people. Their car was heavily damaged by rocks and the windshield was shattered.
Costa Rican police eventually arrived to sort out the incident. Zook was taken to the hospital where he was treated and released.
Cagan H. Sekercioglu with the damaged car (left), Jim Zook was cut in the hand and bruised on his back (right). Photos courtesy Cagan Sekercioglu
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Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
Amazon, the world’s largest internet retailer, is to establish a customer contact centre in Costa Rica, as its steps up its efforts to woo Spanish speaking customers both in the US and in Latin America.
The retailer is planning to open a Latin America contact centre in San Jose in Costa Rica, with between 100 and 150 staff, in its first direct presence in Latin America.
Costa Rica, which has wages well below those in the US, has attracted several call-centre operators who use it to service customers in the US, Latin America and Spain.
Amazon’s planned investment in Costa Rica comes as the retailer expands the Spanish language offerings on its US site. This week the retailer launched a Spanish-language software store, and it plans to add a Spanish-language DVD section alongside its existing Libros En Espanol books section.
Amazon is one of the most popular internet retailers in Latin America, in spite of currently selling to customers there only via its predominantly English-language US site.
According to figures from ComScore Media Metrix, an estimated 5.9m Latin American users visited its sites in May, trailing the 7.5m visitors to the retail, entertainment and travel sites of B2W, a subsidiary of Brazil’s Lojas Americanas.
The traffic to its US site from Latin America exceeds traffic to Amazon’s independent French website, according to Media Metrix figures.
Amazon has not expanded into new territories since 2004, when it acquired China’s Joyo.com site.
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