Frontier Study Tour: Panama Canal Expansion Holds Opportunity for U.S. Ag
3/14/2010
By Greg Vincent, AgWeb Editor
A container ship full of grain moving through the Panama Canal today will hold about 2 million bushels. When the massive Panama Canal expansion project is complete in 2014, that number will more than double, and potential efficiencies for moving U.S. agricultural products overseas will be astounding.
Maria Sanchez, International Trade Specialist and leader of the dry bulk segment at the Panama Canal Authority, says the relationship between the two countries is strengthened because of the dependency each country has on the Canal.
About 6% of the Panamanian GPD is derived directly from the canal. With 40% of ships moving through the man-made waterway originating in the United States and 27% being destined there, interest in the canal from both countries is easy to understand.
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