CAIRO, Aug 22: The Suez Canal, Egypt's third largest source of income, has set a new daily record of $14.3 million, authorities said on Tuesday. The record was set on Monday, when 60 ships carrying 2.9 million tons of merchandise crossed the canal, a strategic passage between Europe and Asia, a statement by canal authorities said.

In June, Egypt announced that income from Suez Canal transit fees reached a record $324.6 million for the year to May 31.

The 100-mile (160-km) canal was inaugurated in 1869 and connects the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, separating mainland Egypt from the Sinai Peninsula.

It generates Egypt's third largest source of income after the tourism industry and remittances from expatriate workers.

—AFP