ISMAILIYA: Suez Canal boosted July revenues by 22.5 percent on an annual basis to $406.3 million, Canal Authority spokesman Mahmud Abdel Wahab said on Thursday.
The rise comes after the canal last month announced a 17 percent annual increase in revenues for the 2006-2007 fiscal year to $4.168 billion.
The Suez Canal, which opened in 1869, is Egypt s third largest source of revenue, after tourism and remittances from expatriate workers.
The annual rise was attributed partly to discounts offered to certain classes of ship, such as natural gas carriers and shipping from China, to encourage them to use the canal.
High fuel prices have prompted increased canal use as shipping companies prefer to pay canal fees rather than the energy costs of sailing around the African continent.
Currently, some 7.5 percent of global trade passes through the canal.
