Panama Canal raises ship traffic after rainfall

Panama Canal authorities said on Monday that they would allow more ships through the waterway after recent rainfall eased drought pressure linked to the El Nino climate pattern.

The canal had cut daily transits from 36 to 32 in September because of low reservoir levels. Authorities said rainfall allowed them to raise the limit to 33 ships a day, with a further rise to 34 from Thursday.

They are also restoring the permitted vessel draft, or how deep a ship sits in the water, to a maximum of 15.24 meters after limiting that measure as well.

Panama has declared a nationwide emergency over an exceptionally strong El Nino. The canal relies on water stored in two reservoirs and carries about five percent of global maritime trade.

During the fiscal year that ended on September 30, the canal handled 521 million tons of cargo on nearly 14,000 ships and recorded revenue of $6.6 billion.