The Chinese billionaire who has the concession to build a Nicaraguan canal has unveiled a map of the route, but more important is a growing list of Chinese companies backing the project, a bunch of them partly or wholly Chinese state-owned. That project does seem to be happening and it will affect the Panama Canal. Those who had counted on a Panamanian monopoly may be in denial. Years ago, a decision was made to either put a canal in Panama or Nicaragua, but an earthquake in Nicaragua put it out of the running. It is back in now as China ships a lot of goods through the canal. Right now Panama does have a virtual monopoly. If they have to compete for pricing, that means less revenue from the canal to run the country, and the alternative will be to grab more tax dollars from the people. Which peoples have the most amount of available dollars, the expats, the local Panamanians, or the Indians?
