00:00Future operations of the Panama Canal face fresh doubt after the country's Supreme Court
00:05annulled key port contracts held by a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based C.K. Hutchison.
00:10Thursday's decision leaves the future ownership of some Panama Canal facilities unclear.
00:15The country's highest court said that it found the laws and acts underpinning the concession
00:19contract between the state and Panama Ports Company unconstitutional. Panama Ports Company,
00:25a C.K. Hutchison subsidiary, operates container terminals at the Canal Pacific and Atlantic
00:30entrances separate from the waterways operations. It has held contract since the 1990s. The decision
00:37could disrupt C.K. Hutchison's proposed $23 billion sale of dozens of ports worldwide,
00:43including the Panamanian Terminals, to a consortium led by BlackRock and Mediterranean Shipping Company.
00:49The three companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
00:52C.K. Hutchison's Hong Kong-listed shares dropped around 5% Friday following the news.
00:58The ruling comes amid a growing U.S.-China rivalry over global trade routes and is seen as a win
01:03for Washington. President Donald Trump has pushed to curb Chinese influence over the Panama Canal,
01:09which carries about 5% of global maritime trade.
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