Panama Canal News Updates

U.S. oil cargoes transiting the Panama Canal are close to a four-year high as Asian refiners rush to import American crude in lieu of Mideast supplies.

Ships are facing 3½-day delays to enter the Panama Canal as the Iran war sparks a traffic surge, prompting a vessel to pay an extra $4 million to jump the line.

A unit of Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison said that Maersk had undermined a contract over operations of ports at either end of the Panama Canal.

If higher energy costs persist, routing cargo through Panama can cut voyages by between three and 15 days, depending on the route, while reducing fuel consumption, Ricaurte Vásquez said.

Beijing warned of a “heavy price” for the Central American country’s forced takeover of the facility from Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison. 

Panama Ports cites the Central American nation's “illegal state takeover” of the Balboa and Cristobal ports, and challenged a Feb. 23 executive decree it said authorized the seizure of its assets.

Canal revenue increased 8%-10% in the first five months of its fiscal year 2026, which started in October, compared to the same period a year earlier. The canal saw a record $5.7 billion in FY 2025. 

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino ordered the temporary occupation of two ports run by a unit of CK Hutchison Holdings after a Panama court ruled against the firm’s concession.

The warning came after Panama authorities invalidated CK Hutchison’s contract to operate the Balboa and Cristobal ports, seeking Maersk’s APM Terminals to run them in a transition phase.  

The Hong Kong-based conglomerate said in a separate stock exchange filing that it will “vigorously pursue” the case under the rules of the International Chamber of Commerce.