Li Ka-shing’s company would have come under increased US scrutiny and risked fight in American court if it held on to overseas docks, sources say.

The deal comes after U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened to take control of the Panama Canal and end what he sees as China’s influence over the waterway critical to global trade.

U.S. President Donald Trump has hailed a deal led by U.S. firm BlackRock to buy most of the $22.8 billion ports business of Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison, including assets it holds along the Panama Canal.