Canal

Red Sea attacks, Ukraine war disrupt global trade: UN

The U.N. trade body has sounded an alarm that global trade is being disrupted by attacks in the Red Sea, the war in Ukraine, and low water levels in the Panama Canal.

Jan Hoffmann, a trade expert at UNCTAD, warned that shipping costs have already surged and energy and food costs are being affected, raising inflation risks.

Avoiding Suez will have knock-on effect on costs, says official

Piraeus Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Vassilis Korkidis warned on Thursday that with 90% of world trade carried by sea, the effect on transit prices from the attacks on commercial ships passing through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, not only on trade but also on fuel costs, is inevitable.

Panama Canal produced record revenue despite drought

The Panama Canal delivered $2.5 billion to the national treasury for last year's operations, the government has said, despite record-low water levels that limited ship transits.

About six percent of global maritime trade passes through the canal each year, and the Panama Canal Authority earns money from tolls and services rendered to ships.

Panama Canal must 'adapt or die' as water levels drop

The Panama Canal, an engineering wonder allowing ships to travel between two oceans, is seeking to adapt to climate change after a biting drought has seen traffic and income dry up.

The canal relies on rainwater to move ships through a series of locks that function like water elevators, raising the vessels up and over the continent between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

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