Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing is considering delaying the expected signing next week of a controversial deal to sell his Panama Canal ports to a consortium including BlackRock Inc., people with knowledge of the matter said.

BlackRock will not sign an agreement next week to buy two Panama ports from Hong Kong's CK Hutchison, as originally planned, a source tells Axios. Why it matters: President Trump touted this deal in his recent address to Congress,

Hong Kong's CK Hutchison will not sign a deal next week to sell its two port operations near the Panama Canal to a BlackRock-led group, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said, as pressure mounted from Beijing.