Panama Canal ushers in new era of international trade and megaships The U.S. remains the most important user, but a Chinese container ship will make the first official transit through the expanded canal June 26 The $5.5-billion expansion project will allow bigger ships to use the canal PortMiami ready to benefit from the era of big ships Panama Canal Expansion 3:19 FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL SHARE FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL SHARE 1 of 11 More than 100 years ago when the SS Ancon sailed into the history books as the first ship to transit the Panama Canal, the waterway was a display of American ingenuity and the Panama Canal Zone was firmly in U.S. hands. But the ship making the first official trip through the newly expanded canal on June 26 will be a Chinese megaship. The United States remains the most importan...