BRIEFS. Business

Unified regional stock market proposed

The impoverished countries of Central American could attract more foreign capital for its businesses if they unified their stock markets, said Guatemala's chancellor, Luis Fernando Andrade.

Andrade, who is attending a meeting of Caribbean foreign ministers in Panama this week, indicated that an integrated Central American market would spur economic growth and competition in the region, as well as reinforce economic ties among the participating countries. "It's a natural market," he added.

El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama already have stock markets, but transactions involving shares are few and overshadowed by the regional giants of Brazil and Mexico.