The Impact of the Panama Canal on the United States: "A Canal Once Carrying the Lifeline of America".

What impact did the existence of the Panama Canal have on the United States? As the saying goes, "Whoever controls the seas, controls trade. Whoever controls trade, controls the world's wealth, and ultimately controls the world itself." The Panama Canal, with its more than 100-year history, has benefited shipping from all countries, but did it once carry the lifeblood of the United States? By understanding the past development of the United States, we can have a better understanding.

Going back to the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, the United States spanned three oceans, making economic exchanges between the east and west coasts extremely difficult. At that time, trade between the United States and other continents was mainly limited to Europe and the western coast of the Atlantic. Moreover, the military was greatly affected by this. Before the Panama Canal was opened, the U.S. military strategy mainly relied on coastal defense and inland troops, lacking support for overseas intervention and maritime strategy. Based on these two factors, even though the United States was an open economy and had a strong military reserve at that time, its international status had not yet reached its peak due to these limitations.

Since the Panama Canal opened in 1914 and the United States gained control of the canal, the United States has successfully transitioned from an Atlantic country to a country spanning both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. After that, the United States expanded its trade not only with Europe but also through the use of the Panama Canal, promoting exchanges with Latin America, Asia, and the Pacific region. The opening of the Panama Canal not only provided stable support for the U.S. economy but also promoted its exchange and development with other countries.

With the Panama Canal, after the United States established trade relations with the rest of the world, the two major factors of trade costs and shipping distance were effortlessly resolved, greatly reducing trade costs and enabling exported goods to reach their destinations faster and at lower costs. This change also helped to strengthen U.S. control over the markets in Asia and Latin America.

Through this, the Panama Canal has successfully made the United States one of the most important trading countries in the world and opened up new markets for the United States, promoting the integration of the domestic market and providing more markets and opportunities for industrial and agricultural products, thus providing a larger market for the entire U.S. industry.