CK Hutchison: Global conglomerate caught in US-China trade spat

About this update from Ck Hutchison Holdings Ltd

CK Hutchison HKEX:1 said on Monday it was in talks with a consortium pursuing its $22.8 billion ports business to add a Chinese "major strategic investor" to the bid, after Beijing flagged a probe into the deal amid heightened Sino-U.S. tension.The Hong Kong-based conglomerate made the comment the day after exclusive talks for a deal - which includes two ports along the Panama Canal - ended with the consortium, led by U.S. investment firm BlackRock NYSE:BLK and Italian billionaire Gianluigi Aponte's family-run shipping company MSC. The canal's strategic value in global trade and U.S. President Donald Trump's call to end what he described as Chinese control over it has made the deal a flashpoint for U.S.-China trade tension, with media reporting that 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 in areas as varied as ports and telecommunications. Here is a look at its origins and current standing globally:ORIGINS established Cheung Kong Industries in 1950 at the age of 21. The tycoon acquired a controlling stake in Hutchison Whampoa nearly three decades later.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.GLOBAL STANDINGCK Hutchison has interests in every continent and operates in more than 50 countries, employing over 300,000 people as of June last year. About half its operating earnings come from its telecoms and infrastructure operations, with three-quarters derived from countries and territories outside mainland China.TELECOMMUNICATIONSThe telecommunications business is the group's most profitable segment and brought in a quarter of its operating profit in 2024.Its CK Hutchison Group Telecom unit handles European operations, while Indonesia, Vietnam and Sri Lanka are under Hutchison Asia Telecommunications.Italy and the UK are the top business contributors for the European unit, while Ireland and Sweden are the fastest-gr...

View stock analysis, news, and events for Ck Hutchison Holdings Ltd