Panama Canal sees vessel traffic recovery in January

LONDON

Panama Canal’s vessel traffic recovered in January, rising nearly 50% year-on-year, while US President Donald Trump threatened to take back control of the canal from China.

The Panama Canal, located at the narrowest point between the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean, had its daily commercial vessel transit limited by draughts that have been intensified due to climate change. The weather conditions at the canal have recently partially alleviated, and transiting through the canal has eased.

Some 632 commercial vessels passed through the canal in January, including containers, roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro), and liquefied petrol and natural gas (LPG and LNG), among others, according to data from tracking firm MarineTraffic.

The total number of commercial vessels passing through the Panama Canal reached 9,377 in January 2024-25.

Container ship traffic in the Panama Canal, accounting for 5% of the global maritime trade, rose 15% last year.

The number of liquid bulk cargo ships passing through the canal rose 50% on an annual basis to 221 in January, while dry breakbulk cargo ship transits soared 205% to 162.

Some 11 LNG ships passed through the canal in January, down 2% year-on-year.

The canal lost a significant amount of its LNG traffic after Europe opted for the US as an LNG supplier in the aftermath of the Russia-Ukraine War, while draught at the canal prolonged wait times.

While the canal’s commercial vessel traffic increased over the years, it still remains below the 2019-2022 average.

The US remains the largest user of the Panama Canal, accounting for 52% of the ships passing through it, followed by China—with a quarter of the US’ cargo—Chile, Japan, and South Korea.

The Panama Canal sees 10,000 or more ship transits annually as the second largest trade route.

The US, during the Roosevelt administration, obtained the rights to build and operate the canal in 1903, opening it in 1914 and operating it until 1977, when Panama and the US signed a deal to jointly operate the canal. Panama was given full ownership in 1999.

Trump, following his inauguration, said in a press conference that the US built the Panama Canal with a massive construction project at the cost of lives and gave it to Panama, but the canal fell into “the wrong hands.”

“We didn’t give it to China. We gave it to Panama, and Panama has been ripping down all the Chinese language signs. They’ve been working like mad to try, but about 70% of the signs were up, and they were written in Chinese, and that’s not the deal,” he said.

“So, we’re going to take it back. They’ve already offered to do many things, but we think it’s appropriate that we take it back,” he added.