China has taken aim at another company it’s not happy with, sending its share price sliding.
On Thursday, China’s Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office reposted a commentary from state-owned Ta Kung Pao — a Hong Kong media outlet — that criticized Hong Kong’s CK Hutchinson for its decision to sell a major stake in two Panama ports to a consortium led by New York-based BlackRock.
CK Hutchison’s shares fell as much as 6.7% on Friday morning — the most since September 2022 — and were 6.2% lower at 2:58 p.m. local time. Its market value is about $23 billion.
The $22.8 billion deal was announced last week after US President Donald Trump hit out at Chinese influence at the Panama Canal and threatened to regain control over the key shipping waterway.
The news came after another multinational company was caught in the ongoing US-China dispute.
On Thursday, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said it had communicated with Walmart over reports that the retail giant had asked suppliers to cut wholesale prices to offset higher US tariffs. A social media account linked to state TV first reported the news and warned that Walmart would face repercussions if the company insisted on squeezing suppliers.
Companies cautioned to ‘think carefully’
Ta Kung Pao said the Panama deal demonstrates that the US is using “state power” to encroach on the legitimate rights and interests of other countries and that it’s “power politics packaged as ‘business behavior.’”
It also criticized CK Hutchinson for being “spineless” and “profit-seeking.” The deal disregards national interests and “betrays and sells out all Chinese people,” according to the commentary.
It advised companies to “think carefully about what position and side they should stand on.”
The company did not immediately respond to a Business Insider request for comment.
Founded by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing — once Asia’s richest man, CK Hutchinson said last week its decision was “purely commercial in nature and wholly unrelated to recent political news reports concerning the Panama Ports.”
The development demonstrates how private companies and their business dealings are increasingly getting caught in the crosshairs of intensified US-China geopolitical tensions.
Ta Kung Pao said in its commentary that the US would use the port deal for “political purposes and promote its own political agenda.”
“China’s shipping and trade here will inevitably be subject to the US,” it added.
Despite investor concerns over the deal following Tung Ka Pao’s commentary, analysts see the deal as positive for CK Hutchinson.
“It’s an astute deal selling to a buyer, ostensibly backed by the Trump administration, at the top of the market, knowing global trade could fall under a new tariff regime,” wrote David Blennerhassett, an analyst at Quiddity Advisors who publishes on the Smartkarma platform, on Thursday.
He added that he doesn’t expect the company to reverse its decision to sell the ports following the commentary.
Analysts at CreditSights wrote last week that not only is CK Hutchinson selling its assets at an attractive price, it’s also removing geopolitical risks associated with its Panama ports.
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