 "A view of the Balboa Port is pictured after Hong Kong's CK Hutchison agreed to sell its interests in a key Panama Canal port operator to a BlackRock Inc-backed consortium, amid pressure from US President Donald Trump to curb China's influence in the region, Panama City, Panama, March 4, 2025. File Image/Reuters")
As Panama and the United States attempt to mend ties, reports are emerging that China’s antitrust regulator will be reviewing the sale of two ports on the Panama Canal by Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison. Earlier this year, the Hong-Kong-based firm sold the ports to a consortium led by BlackRock, drawing eyebrows from China.
According to The Financial Times, the planned sale was part of a $22.8 billion deal for 43 ports around the world. However, the deal sparked criticism and scepticism in China. Not only this, CK Hutchison has already been warned to “think twice” about selling to a group that includes investors from American firms like BlackRock and Global Infrastructure Partners.
In a published comment on its website on Friday, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation said that it was aware of the deal and would “review it in accordance with the law to protect fair competition in the market and safeguard the public interest”.
China questions the deal
The department’s remarks on the matter came in response to questions about the Panama ports deal from Beijing-backed newspaper Ta Kung Pao in Hong Kong. The comments were from an anti-monopoly division of the department.
Earlier, the Hong-Kong base newspaper reported on the sale and called it a “spineless, grovelling” move that “sells out all Chinese people”. The statement, however, does not clarify whether the Chinese regulators intend to review the entire deal or will limit their focus to the ports in Panama.
It is important to note that the two Panama ports account for only a small proportion of the deal value, which also includes ports in Europe, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. A source close to the matter told The Financial Times that the regulator was assessing whether the sale would breach regulations or restrict competition in China’s domestic shipping and international cargo trade markets.
According to two other sources, at least one industry expert has been consulted by SAMR to work on the case. The source said that the expert had suggested the regulator to impose conditions on the purchase by the BlackRock-led consortium to ensure the deal would not weaken the competitiveness of Chinese shipping companies and cargo owners.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsIt is pertinent to note that CK Hutchison is controlled by Hong Kong’s richest man Li Ka-shing and his family. The company has been increasingly caught between Beijing and Washington over the Panama ports since US President Donald Trump complained about the growing Chinese influence over the canal. Trump stirred more headlines after he suggested the United States should take back the canal.