CAIRO- Egypt's Suez Canal saw its revenue hit 2.66 billion US dollars over the first seven months of 2010, marking an 11.5 per cent rise compared with the same period in 2009, Suez Canal Authority chairman Ahmed Fadel said later Monday. The number of ships passing through the waterway increased 3.1 per cent in the first seven months of 2010, compared with 9,896 in the same period last year, Fadel was quoted by the official MENA news agency as saying. The volume of cargo increased by 18.8 per cent to 369 million tonnes over the same period, added Fadel. The canal's revenue in July grew by 6.1 per cent to reach 406.2 million dollars compared with the same period in 2009. It is also the highest monthly revenue since late 2008. Around seven per cent of sea transported world trade passes through the Suez Canal, making it a barometer of global trade. The Suez Canal revenue is one of the major sources of income for Egypt.