Key points
- BlackRock announced $23 billion deal with CK Hutchinson
- BlackRock to take ownership of Panamanian ports of Cristobal, Balboa
- Ports are located at the Atlantic and Pacific ends of the canal
ISLAMABAD: A deal for the US to “reclaim” the Panama Canal is increasingly under fire from leaders in China and Hong Kong.
Earlier this month, BlackRock announced a $23 billion deal with CK Hutchinson to take ownership of the Panamanian ports of Cristobal and Balboa.
The ports are located at the Atlantic and Pacific ends of the canal.
Fox News reported BlackRock would also take over Hutchinson’s controlling interest in 43 ports in 23 other countries.
However, Hong Kong leader John Lee on Tuesday said criticism of city conglomerate CK Hutchison’s sale of its Panama Canal ports deserved “serious attention”, after Beijing authorities repeatedly slammed the deal.
US pressure
The business empire of Hong Kong’s richest man, Li Ka-shing, sold most of its port operations — including those in the canal — to a US-led consortium this month following pressure from US President Donald Trump.
But Beijing has upped pressure on the firm since, with two Chinese government offices managing Hong Kong affairs republishing newspaper articles last week blasting the transaction and questioning whether CK Hutchison sided with the United States over China, according to AFP.
“There have been extensive discussions in society about the issue and this reflects society’s concern over the matter,” Lee, the chief executive of the largely autonomous Chinese city, told reporters.
“These concerns deserve serious attention.”
There have been extensive discussions in society about the issue and this reflects society’s concern over the matter.” – Hong Kong leader John Lee
Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources, that senior Chinese leaders have ordered several government agencies — including the State Administration for Market Regulation — to scrutinise the deal.
This examination by Beijing does not necessarily result in follow-up action, the sources told Bloomberg, asking not to be identified to discuss private deliberations.
Asked to confirm that report, Beijing directed AFP to the “relevant authorities”.
Economic coercion
But spokeswoman Mao Ning said that “China has always firmly opposed the use of economic coercion, bullying and infringement to undermine the legitimate rights and interest of other countries”.
Shares of CK Hutchison in Hong Kong fell nearly four per cent on Tuesday morning.
For months, Trump has complained that China controls shipping in the Panama Canal, which was built by the United States more than a century ago to link the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
The US president repeatedly threatened to “take back” the canal, which was handed over to Panama in 1999.
Before the sale, CK Hutchison’s subsidiary in Panama had managed two of the five ports at the canal — one on Cristobal, on the Atlantic side and the other on Balboa, the Pacific side — via a government concession since 1997.
CK Hutchison, one of Hong Kong’s largest conglomerates, said the deal was unrelated to recent political news.
“Fair and just environment”
Lee on Tuesday urged foreign governments to “provide a fair and just environment” for Hong Kong enterprises, without calling out the United States by name.
“We oppose the abusive use of coercion, of bullying tactics in international economic and trade relations,” he said.
Lee said any transaction must comply with legal and regulatory requirements, adding that Hong Kong would “handle it in accordance with the law and regulations”.
The Hong Kong and Macao Work Office — an office in Beijing overseeing Hong Kong affairs — republished a newspaper article last Thursday asking CK Hutchison “which side it stands on”.
Two days later, it ran another piece critical of the deal, which was later republished by the Liaison Office, the top Beijing authority based in Hong Kong.
AFP has contacted the conglomerate for comment.
Outspoken Hong Kong ex-leader CY Leung added to the chorus of criticism, saying “some Hong Kong businesspeople mistakenly believe that ‘businesspeople have no homeland'”.
“American businesspeople can and will do only things aligned with US interests… the same applies to China,” Leung wrote on Facebook on Monday.
