The Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison’s planned sale of ports in Panama to a group led by BlackRock, the American finance giant, is under fire from Beijing.

BlackRock's landmark deal for two Panamanian ports is in danger of running aground, threatened by geopolitical forces outside of its control. Driving the news: Panama's Maritime A

CK Hutchison dropped by over 6% in Hong Kong trading on Friday, even as the city's benchmark Hang Seng Index rose by over 2%.

China’s top office on Hong Kong affairs has reposted an attack on CK Hutchison’s decision to sell its Panama Canal ports, amplifying a Beijing-backed newspaper’s warnings for the Li Ka-shing-owned conglomerate to “think twice” about which side it stands on.

Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing’s company CK Hutchison Holdings, which recently sold its Panama Canal ports, should think twice about which side it wants to stand with, according to a scathing newspaper commentary posted by Beijing’s top office for the city’s affairs on its website.