Panama Canal confirms growth of Asia/U.S. East Coast box traffic
The Panama Canal Authority reported a 22-percent rise in second quarter container tonnage, to 14.2 million long tons from 11.6 million long tons in the same period of 2003.
“Container tonnage continues to rise due to increased containerization and trade between the United States and Asia,” the authority said in a statement.
Total vessel transits increased 9.4 percent year-on-year, to 3,732 from 3,411. Among these transits, there was a 20.4 percent boost in Panamax vessel traffic, to 1,370 vessels from 1,138, the Panama Canal Authority reported.