Why did construction of the panama canal become more important to the united states after the spanish american war?

US gained territory in the Pacific Ocean.

The Spanish-American War is the beginning of the imperial era in US history gaining their first territories from the war.

The US gained Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines from the Spanish-American War and soon after completed the annexation of Hawaii. With colonies in the Pacific and trade connections growing in Asia, the US needed a quick way to move resources and ships from the East coast to these new areas. The canal through Panama made the naval commute shorter and faster as well as safer.

They most like influence us and there self