Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison stresses need for war chest in face of geopolitical tensions

Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison Holdings needs a war chest to maintain its fiscal health in the face of escalating geopolitical tensions, its chairman Victor Li Tzar-kuoi has said, with senior managers assuring a US$23 billion deal involving two Panama ports will comply with regulations.

At the conglomerate’s annual general meeting on Thursday, Li said that many uncertainties were arising from geopolitics and the tariff policies of various countries, adding he “dared not” to forecast global economic development.

“Hong Kong is currently undergoing what I would call a ‘stress test’. We are holding cash with fewer loans, adopting a cautious approach to navigate through difficult times,” Li said in the meeting.

But he added that the group needed to maintain its fiscal health with a war chest to cope with any unforeseen circumstances.

“With financial backing, we can face any headwinds,” he said.

The group’s senior management shed some light on the controversial US$23 billion ports deal, which excludes the company’s facilities in Hong Kong and China, during the first public event since the announcement on March 4 over the sale to a consortium led by US asset management giant BlackRock.

“The proposed transaction requires extensive examination indeed, and we, at CK Hutchison, will fully cooperate. Until we receive approval, we will not implement any concentration [in terms of antitrust],” co-managing director Dominic Lai Kai-ming said.