Following recent speculation about Cosco’s entry into the consortium currently composed of US-based BlackRock and Swiss shipping giant MSC (through its subsidiary Terminal Investment Limited), which is negotiating the acquisition of global terminal operator Hutchinson Port Holdings from the CK Hutchinson Group, partial confirmations are beginning to emerge. On 28 July 2025, CK Hutchinson announced its intention to invite a “major strategic investor” from China to join the consortium. Although Cosco has not been explicitly named, it remains the only name mentioned so far.
CK Hutchinson’s statement came the day after the expiry of the 145-day exclusive negotiation period outlined in the preliminary agreement signed on 4 March. The path to a final deal has been hindered—and effectively stalled—by the Chinese government through various indirect means. Beijing perceives US involvement in the 43 terminals operated by Hutchinson Port Holdings as a threat to national interests, even though the agreement has excluded mainland Chinese ports from the outset.
According to previous reports, China Cosco Shipping not only requested to join the consortium but also demanded veto rights—or at least equivalent powers—in the new company that would be created through the acquisition. If the deal ultimately goes through, MSC would become the largest container terminal operator globally, having already secured its position at the top of the global container shipping fleet.
Currently, the world's largest terminal operator by capacity is PSA International, with 62.6 million TEUs, followed by China Merchants (55 million TEUs), Cosco Shipping (50 million TEUs), APM Terminals (45 million TEUs), Hutchinson Port (43 million TEUs), MSC (42.3 million TEUs), and DP World (42 million TEUs). By combining MSC’s and Hutchinson Port’s capacities, the new entity would reach a global capacity of 85.3 million TEUs—a scenario that may trigger scrutiny from various antitrust authorities.
Should the negotiations conclude successfully, resulting in the transfer of Hutchinson Port Holdings’ terminals to the new consortium made up of BlackRock, MSC, and Cosco, PSA International might decide to withdraw from its 20% stake in CK Hutchinson’s port operations, a share it acquired in 2006 for $4.4 billion.
