Work is progressing on several projects on the Belize peninsula of Placencia, long-touted as one of the Caribbean’s next hot spots. After years of delays, the government is finally paving the lone road that runs the length of the peninsula, home to one of the few stretches of white sandy beaches on the Belize mainland. Source: Kevin Brass, International Herald Tribune, Properties Blog

Panama's economic activity increased by 8.24 percent in September compared with the same month a year earlier, the government said on Monday.  Source: Reuters

If ever there was a time to invest in an exotic home in Latin America, this is it - or so the sales pitch would have it. The region is being touted as the one most likely to emerge unscathed from the current economic turbulence, with luxury new developments aimed at foreign buyers in the most unlikely locations under the sun. Source: Susan Emmett, The Times