THE opening of the expanded Panama Canal next year that will allow passage to larger containerships of up to 13,000 TEU is expected to benefit China's trade, reports Xinhua news agency. 

At present, shipping Venezuelan oil to China takes 45 days via the Atlantic and the Indian oceans because the oil tankers are too big for the Panama Canal. Following, the completion of the expansion works, the canal will reduce transit times to 30 days at lower costs, said Xinhua.

It is expected that with the opening of the third lock system, the annual capacity of the canal will rise from 300 million tons of cargo at present to 600 million tons. 

Some 17,000 vessels are forecast to pass through the canal every year, up 21 per cent from 14,000 ships, according to the Panama Canal Authority (ACP).

This spells good news for Chinese shipping companies said manager of Cosco Panama, Wei Chunfeng, given that mainland China is the canal's second largest client after the US, and cargo volume is rising, according to data from the US Department of Transportation.

Said Mr Wei: "To shipping companies, being able to transport more cargo at a lower cost is very important. Most Chinese products available in American supermarkets are shipped through the Panama Canal. And an expanded canal will definitely benefit trade as using larger ships will make it less expensive to export Chinese products to the Americas."