January 20, 2025
Recently, the Panama Canal has become a hot spot in the shipping industry, and Trump's remarks have attracted attention. Previously, drought caused restrictions on traffic. Although it has been lifted, the traffic volume has not met expectations, and a large number of ships have not returned. ACP released data for December: 1,059 ships passed through, including 160 large container ships, an increase of 6% from November, which did not reach the daily quota of 36 ships; 279 ships passed through the new locks, an increase of 3%, which did not return to the pre-drought level. There was little return of wide-body Panamax bulk carriers, with only 6 passing through in December. Some LNG carriers chose to detour to reduce freight rates. Only 2 ships passed through the canal in December, and the slots were not filled.
