For the third time since its inauguration, the Expanded Panama Canal set a new monthly tonnage record of 38.1 million tons (PC/UMS) in May 2018.

During the period, the expanded waterway saw a total of 1,231 vessels transit its locks, according to the Panama Canal Authority (ACP).

The container ship segment contributed highest tonnage with 36%, breaking its segment record with 13.8 million tons (PC/UMS) transited by 229 vessels.

“This new historical milestone reiterates the positive effect of the Expanded Canal and is further proof of the continued confidence of the maritime industry in the Panama Canal, and the impact it will have on the future of world maritime trade,” Jorge L. Quijano, the Panama Canal Administrator, said.

The previous record was set in January 2017, when 1,260 vessels transited 36.1 million tons (PC/UMS) through the waterway, just a month after setting the record with 35.4 million tons (PC/UMS) transited by 1,166 vessels in December 2016.

Since the inauguration of the Neopanamax locks almost two years ago, the waterway has received around 3,800 Neopanamax vessels, around 50 percent of which are containerships.