HONG KONG (Reuters) – Shares of Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison slid more than 6% on Friday after China’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office posted a commentary in state media criticising the company’s recent port sale as a betrayal of China.
The Hong Kong-based group said last week it agreed to sell most of its global $22.8 billion ports business, including assets it holds along the strategically-important Panama Canal, to a group led by U.S. investment firm BlackRock.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who has called for the waterway to be removed from what he says is Chinese ownership, has hailed the deal.
On Thursday, the state-owned Ta Kung Pao newspaper based in Hong Kong published a commentary saying the deal “betrays and sells out the whole of Chinese people,” neglects national interests and shows CK Hutchison has no “backbone” and is profit-seeking.
China’s top-level body overseeing Hong Kong’s affairs under the State Council also posted the column on its website.
CK Hutchison, a Hong Kong founded and listed firm owned by billionaire Li Ka-shing, has maintained its business operations are independent from China.
The commentary and the drop in CK Hutchison’s share price are an indication of the complex geopolitical environment the company faces amid pressure on China from Trump and investor concerns that the deal might not have had Beijing’s backing.
CK Hutchison and the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office did not immediately respond to request for comment.
By noon, its shares were down 4.6%, after a decline of as much as 6.7% in early trading. This compared to a 2.5% rise in the main Heng Sang Index.
(Reporting by Clare Jim and James Pomfret; Editing by)
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