SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                                    FORM 6-K

                        Report of Foreign Private Issuer
                    Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 Or 15d-16 Of The
                         Securities Exchange Act of 1934

                           Short Form of Press Release

                  BANCO LATINOAMERICANO DE EXPORTACIONES, S.A.
             (Exact name of Registrant as specified in its Charter)

                           LATIN AMERICAN EXPORT BANK
                 (Translation of Registrant's name into English)

                        Calle 50 y Aquilino de la Guardia
                                 Apartado 6-1497
                             El Dorado, Panama City
                               Republic of Panama

              (Address of Registrant's Principal Executive Offices)

(Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports
under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.)

                           Form 20-F _x_ Form 40-F ___

(Indicate by check mark whether the  registrant  by furnishing  the  information
contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing  information to the Commission
pursuant to Rule 12g-3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.)

                                 Yes ___ No _x_

(If "Yes" is marked,  indicate below the file number  assigned to the registrant
in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b). 82__.)


                                   SIGNATURES

      Pursuant to the  requirements of the Securities  Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant  has duly  caused  this  report  to be  signed  on its  behalf by the
undersigned, thereto duly authorized.

May 6, 2004

                                    Banco Latinoamericano de Exportaciones, S.A.

                                              By: /s/ Pedro Toll

                                              Name: Pedro Toll
                                              Title: General Manager


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

             BANCO LATINOAMERICANO DE EXPORTACIONES, S.A. ("BLADEX")

            REPORTS FIRST QUARTER 2004 NET INCOME OF US$29.8 MILLION

1Q04 Financial Highlights

o     Net Income was US$29.8 million in the 1Q04, compared to US$16.2 million
      for the 4Q03, and US$10.4 million for the 1Q03.
o     Exposure in Argentina (net of allowance for credit losses and impairment
      loss) is US$222 million, down 45% from a year ago, and down 7% from last
      quarter.

Panama  City,  Republic  of  Panama,  May 4,  2004 -  Banco  Latinoamericano  de
Exportaciones,  S.A. ("BLADEX" or "the Bank") (NYSE:  BLX),  announced today its
results for the first  quarter  ended  March 31,  2004.  (The  Bank's  financial
statements are prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP, and all figures are stated
in U.S. dollars.)

The Bank  reported net income of US$29.8  million for the first quarter of 2004,
or US$0.76 per share,  compared to net income of US$16.2 million, or US$0.41 per
share, in the previous  quarter,  and net income of US$10.4 million,  or US$0.58
per share, in the first quarter of 2003.

Net income for the first  quarter of 2004  reflected the effect of US$36 million
in partial  payments and  prepayments  of Argentine  restructured  loans,  which
contributed to the reversals of the allowance for credit losses in the amount of
US$19 million out of a total of US$21.4 million.

                                   Key Figures

             ------------------------------------------------------
                                              1Q03    4Q03     1Q04
             ------------------------------------------------------
             Net Income (In US$ million)     $10.4   $16.2    $29.8

             EPS*                            $0.58   $0.41    $0.76

             Return on Average Equity        12.1%   11.2%    20.2%

             Tier 1 Capital Ratio            18.2%   35.4%    37.9%

             Net interest margin             1.73%   2.07%    1.69%
             ------------------------------------------------------
            *Earnings  per  share  calculations  are  based on the
            average  number  of  shares  outstanding  during  each
            period.  During the first  quarter of 2004 the average
            number of common shares was 39.4 million,  compared to
            39.3 million in the fourth  quarter of 2003,  and 17.3
            million during the first quarter of 2003.


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Comments from the Chief Executive Officer

Jaime Rivera,  Chief Executive Officer of BLADEX stated, "With the turnaround of
the Bank now complete,  the overall framework of our operations is being defined
by significantly improved prospects for economic growth in the Region, continued
progress on our plan to strengthen  and broaden the scope of our business  model
and, generally, a stable or improved risk profile in our portfolio.  Within this
context,  the first  quarter's  financial  results were driven by three factors:
first,  strong principal  repayments in Argentina;  second, a market temporarily
flushed with  liquidity,  resulting in declining  interest rates and pressure on
lending  margins,  and third,  continued  progress on improving  our  efficiency
levels.

The strong  performance  of our  portfolio in Argentina was related to generally
increasing levels of liquidity in the local market, and to record high commodity
(export)  prices.  I'm  pleased to report  that we  collected  US$36  million in
principal  repayments  during the  period,  bringing  our total net  exposure to
US$222 million, 7% lower than at year-end 2003.

Regarding the pressure on margins that we saw during the quarter,  we have taken
the position that,  given the improved  economic growth prospects in the Region,
this  trend is likely to  reverse  itself as  credit  demand  strengthens.  As a
result,  we  elected  to slow  down our  lending  in order to  preserve  lending
capacity  within our credit  limits and have it  available  once  pricing  terms
improve in our favor.

The  approximate 5 basis point decrease in short-term  LIBOR interest rates over
the  quarter  hurt us  because,  with  our  assets  re-pricing  faster  than our
liabilities,  our balance sheet is positioned to take advantage of interest rate
increases. We maintain our view that interest rates are heading for an increase,
however, and currently expect to keep our maturity profile unchanged.  All other
things being equal,  we estimate that a 25 basis points  increase in the general
level of interest rates would result in a US$2.1 million additional net interest
income through year-end.

The most exciting  developments  during the quarter took place outside the scope
of the financial  statements,  however. With the arrival of Mr. Rubens Amaral to
head our commercial  operations out of our New York Agency,  we put in place the
last of the missing  pieces  needed to put the  transformation  of the Bank into
high gear. We are taking steps to optimize our client coverage  model,  changing
the  segmentation  of our client base to allow for more effective  cross selling
tactics  identifying  and pursuing  new product  opportunities,  optimizing  the
structure of our sales force, and  incorporating  the feedback  developed during
our brand and perception study into our plans.  Most  importantly,  we have been
very successful in attracting top caliber people to our team.

I'm  pleased to report  that at our Annual  Shareholders'  Meeting,  we received
approval  by  practically  100% of the  votes  cast on all  items  submitted  to
shareholders. Furthermore, we are seeing greater interest from the market in our
company,  evidenced  by a  greater  flow  of our  information,  broader  analyst
coverage, and an overall higher level of Investor Relations activity.

Lastly, we continue studying the capital management question closely,  aiming to
arrive  at a  solution  that will  make the most  sense in view of risk  levels,
growth  opportunities,  and our shareholders' best interests.  Assuming a stable
scenario,  it is the Bank's  intention to take additional  action on the capital
management front during 2004."

ABOUT BLADEX

BLADEX is a multinational  Bank  originally  established by the Central Banks of
Latin  American and Caribbean  countries to promote trade finance in the Region.
Based in Panama,  its  shareholders  include central and commercial  banks in 23
countries of the Region, as well as international  banks and private  investors.
Through March 31, 2004,  over its 25 years of  operations,  BLADEX had disbursed
accumulated credits of over US$125 billion in the Region.


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This press  release  contains  forward-looking  statements  of  expected  future
developments.  The Bank wishes to ensure that such statements are accompanied by
meaningful  cautionary statements pursuant to the safe harbor established by the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward-looking statements
in this press release refer to the trend of pressure on margins reversing itself
as credit demand  strengthens  and the increase in interest rates in the future.
These  forward-looking   statements  reflect  the  expectations  of  the  Bank's
management and are based on currently available data; however, actual experience
with  respect to these  factors is subject to future  events and  uncertainties,
which could materially  impact the Bank's  expectations.  Among the factors that
can cause actual  performance and results to differ materially are as follows: a
decline in the  willingness of  international  lenders and depositors to provide
funding  to the Bank,  causing a  contraction  of the Bank's  credit  portfolio,
adverse  economic  or  political  developments  in the Region,  particularly  in
Argentina or Brazil,  which could  increase  the level of impaired  loans in the
Bank's  loan  portfolio  and,  if  sufficiently  severe,  result  in the  Bank's
allowance for probable  credit losses being  insufficient to cover losses in the
portfolio,  unanticipated  developments  with respect to  international  banking
transactions   (including   among  other  things,   interest  rate  spreads  and
competitive  conditions),  a change  in the  Bank's  credit  ratings,  events in
Argentina and Brazil or other countries in the Region unfolding in a manner that
is  detrimental to the Bank, or which might result in adequate  liquidity  being
unavailable to the Bank, or the Bank's  operations  being less  profitable  than
anticipated.
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BLADEX is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.  Further  investor  information
can be found at www.blx.com.

A LONGER VERSION OF THIS PRESS RELEASE WITH DETAILED  INFORMATION HAS BEEN FILED
WITH THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE  COMMISSION,  AND CAN BE OBTAINED
FROM BLADEX AT:

BLADEX, Head Office, Calle 50 y Aquilino de la Guardia, Panama City, Panama
Attention: Carlos Yap, Senior Vice President, Finance
Tel. No. (507) 210-8581, e-mail: cyap@blx.com,
-or-
Investor relations firm
i-advize Corporate Communications, Inc.
Melanie Carpenter / Peter Majeski
Tel: (212) 406-3690, e-mail: bladex@i-advize.com

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There will be a conference call to discuss the quarterly  results on May 5, 2004
at 11:00 a.m. New York City time. For those interested in participating,  please
call (800)  500-0177  in the United  States  or, if outside  the United  States,
please dial (719)  457-2679.  All  participants  should give the conference name
"BLADEX  Quarterly Call" or the conference  ID#202247 to the telephone  operator
five  minutes  before the call is set to begin.  There will also be a live audio
webcast of the event at www.blx.com.

The BLADEX Conference Call will become available for review on Conference Replay
one hour after the conclusion of the conference  call, and will remain available
through May 6, 2004. Please dial (888) 203-1112 or (719) 457-0820 and follow the
instructions. The Conference ID# for the call that will be replayed is 202247.
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