Hong Kong based CK Hutchison sells its Panama port business to US investment giant BlackRock

Hong Kong: CK Hutchison, a Hong Kong-based conglomerate, agreed to sell much of its global $22.8 billion ports business that includes assets near the strategically important Panama Canal to a group led by US investment giant BlackRock this month, Reuters reported.

The canal’s strategic value in global trade and US President Donald Trump’s call to end what he describes as Chinese control over it has made the deal a flashpoint for US-China trade tensions, with media reports saying Beijing was unhappy with the deal and was reviewing it for security and antitrust issues.

Owned by billionaire Li Ka-shing and founded and listed in Hong Kong, CK Hutchison has a global footprint with businesses spanning from ports to telecommunication. Here is a look at its origins and current standing globally:

Li Ka-shing established Cheung Kong Industries in 1950 at the age of 21. The tycoon acquired a controlling stake in Hutchison Whampoa nearly three decades later, opens new tab.

Hutchison Whampoa traced its roots to a small dispensary firm in China’s southern Guangzhou that was established in 1828 and a dock and repair yard operator founded on the Pearl River in 1863.

Li Ka-shing carried out a major reorganisation of the business in 2015 by merging his two flagship companies, Hutchison Whampoa and Cheung Kong. This created CK Hutchison, one of Asia’s largest conglomerates with a global presence.