Chinese firm to build Panama Canal alternative

According to a report in The Guardian, Nicaragua has awarded an un-named Chinese company a 100-year concession to build an alternative to the Panama Canal, in a step that looks set to have profound geopolitical ramifications.

The president of the country’s national assembly, Rene Nuñez, announced the US$40bn (£26bn) project, which will reinforce Beijing’s growing influence on global trade and weaken US dominance over the key shipping route between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.

The national assembly will now debate two bills on the project, including an outline for an environmental impact assessment.