Although a war of words over tariffs has intensified between China and the United States, there is still good reason to be optimistic about prospects for global trade, the administrator and CEO of the Panama Canal Authority said in an interview with The Japan Times on Wednesday.
Jorge L. Quijano, who stopped in Tokyo this week as part of an Asian tour, noted that while customers of the Panama Canal — including many Japanese businesses — remain mindful of ongoing trade disputes, the growing economic interdependence of the world economy still provides strong incentives to avoid outright trade conflict.
"If some of the statements on trade that President Trump has made do materialize it could impact traffic on the Panama canal," said Quijano, in reference to the threat that tariffs pose to his hyper-connected nation of 4 million.