A good deal for Li Ka-Shing but a less certain outlook for global shipping

[SINGAPORE] You’ve got to hand it to Li Ka-Shing. At the age of 96, the Hong Kong tycoon manages to ink a US$22.8 billion deal at a generous valuation.  

Last week, BlackRock and Terminal Investment Limited (TIL) announced that they would be buying CK Hutchison’s ports business. The Hong Kong conglomerate is owned by the Li family.

The deal includes Hutchison Ports Holdings’ (HPH) 90 per cent interests in Panama Ports Company, which owns and operates the ports of Balboa and Cristobal in Panama. The deal also includes CK Hutchison’s 80 per cent stake in 43 ports comprising 199 berths in 23 countries, together with all of HPH’s management resources, operations, terminal operating systems, IT and other systems.