The Panama Canal Authority will cap daily vessel transits at 34 from Sept. 4 and cut them to 32 from Sept. 15, walking back an earlier pledge to avoid limits as El Niño-linked heat and below-average rainfall shrink the freshwater reservoirs that feed the locks. The move echoes 2023-24 drought curbs that cut daily traffic to as few as 22 ships. Auction premiums for priority passage have topped $1 million, with one tanker reported above $4 million, and roughly half of gas carriers bound for Asia chose the Cape of Good Hope in August—the highest share in a decade. The canal handles about 14,000 ships a year, roughly 5% of global maritime trade, and generates about $3 billion annually for Panama. NOAA sees a greater than 90% chance of a very strong El Niño through the Northern Hemisphere fall and winter of 2026-27, while Panama weighs a long-term Río Indio reservoir to secure water for the canal and nearby communities.