Around 4% of global maritime trade and over 40% of US container traffic pass through the Panama Canal|Dan Lundberg|CC BY-SA 2.0

China vehemently disapproved of a deal that would see American conglomerate BlackRock purchase key ports in the Panama Canal from Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison (CKH) for $22.8 billion.

In a state-owned Ta Kung Pao newspaper, Beijing commented that the deal is a “spineless groveling” and a “betrayal” of the Chinese people. Shares of CKH tumbled over 6% on Friday.

The proposed deal, announced last week, includes the Balboa and Cristobal ports at the two ends of the canal as well as  43 other ports with 199 berths across 23 countries.

China’s sharp response suggests political pressure could derail the sale, even though no Chinese regulatory approval is required.

Roughly 4% of global maritime trade and over 40% of US container traffic pass through the Panama Canal.