An extended drought is delaying ships’ passage through the Panama Canal, setting off a logjam of vessels waiting to pass through one of the world’s most important shipping routes. The unusually lengthy dry season, and resulting water shortages, forced the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) to restrict the number of ships passing through the canal each day, along with their maximum depth. Those restrictions come in the face of what the ACP described as “unprecedented challenges” with “no historical precedence.” More than 3% of the world’s trade volume, including liquified methane gas from the U.S., and as much as 29% of container trade crossing the Pacific passes through the Panama Canal. (The Guardian, FT $, CNBC, Yahoo, Reuters, Jalopnik)
