New Delhi, Dec. 23 -- Trump's Canal Vow Fuels US-China Trade War

A high-stakes geopolitical drama is unfolding over the Panama Canal's vital ports, where China's state-backed shipping giant Cosco Shipping is demanding a controlling stake in a $23 billion deal led by BlackRock and the Mediterranean Shipping Company. The Financial Times reports that this aggressive push risks derailing the transaction, which includes two strategically located ports flanking the canal, a linchpin of global trade handling 5 percent of world maritime commerce. BlackRock and MSC, initially poised to acquire CK Hutchison's 41 global ports, are now contemplating withdrawal unless Cosco backs down from its majority share insistence, according to sources familiar ...