Answer:
WW1 had left the nations of Britain and France in financial and political ruin. They had been able to stop the rise of communism in their own borders but not fascism in Italy nor National Socialism in Germany. This was due to a fear of another oncoming war between these two. Which France and Britain were not financially or militarily prepared for. When the Great Depression hit, it had made matters worse allowing Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler to gain power through popular acts of civil engineering and employment. Britain and France in the meantime did not recover from the Great Depression till the start of WW2 when many males were conscripted to fight in the war.
Before the panama canal people from East coast of America who wanted to go to Asia had to either sail around south America which took months or sail towards Asia and go around Africa which took even longer. The panama canal was a short cut right in the middle of central America which cut navigation time in half. Hope I helped. :)
