NO. 1: The Panama Canal Authority (PCA) is adding three more daily transit slots this month to allow more vessels to pass through the waterway. 

PCA said it added two additional slots for auction on Monday (March 18). Another slot is scheduled to be added next Monday (March 25), boosting the number of daily transits to 27 from 24 overall. The authority said water levels at Gatun Lake, which helps supply the canal, allowed it to add the slots. They will remain in effect unless conditions change.

PCA reduced the number of transit slots last year in response to a historic drought. The canal is the preferred route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, allowing LNG tankers to make the journey to Asia faster than others such as the Cape of Good Hope or Suez Canal. More gas tankers...