'Why BlackRock boss Larry Fink believes he will win over control of the Panama Canal'

 by Charles Gasparino

Larry Fink is playing the long game.

With a little time, a possible nudge from President Trump and some on-the-ground lobbying of his contacts in mainland China, BlackRock’s billionaire boss believes he will win approval from the Mainland’s apparatchiks to take control of the Panama Canal, On The Money has learned.

Specifically, Fink is looking to close a $23 billion deal with Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison to buy 43 ports worldwide — including the two ports that are strategically located on the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the Panama Canal.

Until recently, most people didn’t know much about CK Hutchison, which is headed by the mercurial, 96-year-old billionaire Li Ka-shing, Hong Kong’s richest tycoon. That was until The Donald began talking up the strategic importance of the Panama Canal, one of the busiest waterways for global trade because it easily connects both oceans through a 51-mile deepwater runway. Hutchison holds long-term leases there and at dozens of others including on the Suez Canal. 

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People at Larry Fink’s BlackRock said they saw the potential for trouble from China Inc., and they built that into the closing schedule.Jack Forbes / NY Post Design

Its stock traded cheaply, and when Trump began to mouth off about the need to exert US eminence at the Panama Canal (the US, after all, built it and controlled the zone until the 1970s), Blackrock saw a way to make some money and get into Trump’s good graces.

The other side of the deal wasn’t so happy. And I’m not talking about Hutchison, but its overlords in the Chinese Communist Party who began to “investigate” the tie-up for God knows what other than to prevent the US from gaining a foothold at this vital waterway. The CCP is now threatening to throttle the entire deal.

The people at BlackRock are at least posturing in private conversations that they’re not too worried. They tell On The Money to ignore reports that the deal was set to be officially signed by Wednesday. The real due date is the 145-day “due diligence” period that began when the buyout was announced on March 4.

The grace period was designed to ensure a complicated buyout involving dozens of ports in many different countries comported with various laws, including getting buy-in from the Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Yes, the people at BlackRock said they saw the potential for trouble from China Inc., and they built that into the closing schedule. They believe that over this time, they can get the deal approved by the CCP overlords and put American flags back up in the canal zone.

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When President Trump began to mouth off about the need to exert US eminence at the Panama Canal, Blackrock saw a way to make some money and get into Trump’s good graces.REUTERS

“We are proceeding as if this deal will happen,” a BlackRock executive told On the Money as this column went to press.

Of course, things could change given the volatile nature of the relations between China and the US and the frenemy dynamic between Trump and Xi. Trump is said to admire the Chinese strongman (and the feeling seems to be mutual), but wary of his obvious global ambitions. Part of Trump, I am told, will never forgive the Chinese for unleashing COVID on the planet, which on top of all the misery it caused, doomed his re-election chances in 2020.

But the BlackRock deal is something Trump covets. He mentioned it in the State of the Union address, no less as proof of an American global renaissance. And people at BlackRock believe the deal will get folded into negotiations with the Chinese over Trump’s plan to save the China-owned short-video app TikTok from being banned from US app stores as early as this weekend, and our overall trade negotiations with the Mainland.

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President Trump is said to admire the Chinese President Xi Jinping (and the feeling seems to be mutual), but wary of his obvious global ambitions.Getty Images

Barring some last-minute deal implosion (or a realistic new competing bid, which at this stage is unlikely), the White House is scrambling to unveil a plan for a newish US-investor-controlled TikTok any minute now, a structure, as On The Money reported, that the Trumpers believe will comport with a US law that demands the end of Chinese control.

But the Chinese will have some buy-in, as I also reported. That includes possibly a minority stake in the new company and it won’t have to part with its algorithm, the important part of TikTok that gins up user engagement and some say, has allowed the Chinese to spy on US users.

To get around the ban legislation, tech giant Oracle will be part of the planned new ownership group, but more importantly, monitor the algo in its cloud. To get Xi’s buy-in, the Chinese remain a part of the app’s infrastructure, which can operate in the US and retain its value estimated in the tens of billions of dollars.

Everybody is happy, the thinking goes, and Xi allows the Hutchison-BlackRock deal to proceed. Maybe it’s all wishful thinking on the part of BlackRock — which I might add is the first US based asset manager to open an office in the Mainland. That means Fink is well versed in Chinese politics and knows how to work the system. 

Or maybe the Chinese will kill the deal because they’re as leery about US global ambitions as we are of theirs. Either way, I’m here simply to report what’s happening, not what will happen, so stay tuned for more.

A BlackRock rep had no comment.

https://nypost.com/2025/04/04/business/why-blackrock-boss-larry-fink-believes-he-will-win-over-control-of-the-panama-canal/

Village eatery blames congestion pricing for impending closure

 This vegan joint just can’t beet congestion pricing.

West Village plant-based French eatery Delice & Sarrasin claims the controversial e-tolling program has led to delivery surcharges from distributors that are so high they are facing the prospect of going out of business.

“We’re at this point now when we’re just open to pay bills,” owner Christophe Caron told The Post, estimating the 12-year-old eatery has just three to six months left before it goes under.

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West Village plant-based French eatery Delice & Sarrasin claims congestion pricing is to blame for a steep decline in its reservations since January.Christophe Caron / Delice & Sarrasin

Two of Caron’s restaurant suppliers began issuing $10 surcharges for each delivery after congestion pricing’s onset in January, he told The Post — and the fees are quickly adding up.

“By the end of the year, [I’ll be paying] up to $2,000 just for one supplier, minimum,” he added. “[For all my suppliers], it’s more like $8,000 to $10,000.”

The inflated delivery prices are coupled with already sky-high ingredient costs, the restaurant owner said, pointing to a $300 increase in the wholesale price of a 40-pound bag of dark chocolate within the last three years.

The lingering impacts of the pandemic are adding insult to injury, he said, adding that he’s observed less customers eating out on average compared to pre-pandemic levels.

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Two of Caron’s (pictured) four restaurant suppliers began issuing $10 surcharges for each delivery after the onset of congestion pricing in January.Courtesy Christophe Caron

“When I was doing research on the customer level …. [customers] said they go out less and spend less, and they’d rather save money for travels now that everything is expensive,” he said.

Caron reports that, while he’s witnessed a decline in walk-in and reservations since 2023, last January saw a dramatic drop in customers – and happened nearly overnight on Jan. 5, when congestion pricing took effect below 60th Street.

“We’ve been open for 12 years, and each year we’ve seen an increase in traffic … until the pandemic happened,” he said. “In January, it was instant. We noticed right away [foot traffic] was down almost 70%.”

Caron isn’t alone, he contends: “If only you knew the amount of restaurants I know that are hanging by a few cents. Everyone’s telling me the same thing: something is about to collapse in New York, but people are not aware.”

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Exterior view of Delice & Sarrasin, a West Village plant-based French eatery.Google Maps

Andrew Rigie, executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, told The Post several restaurants have reported “business is off” and blame congestion pricing for declining patronage since January.

“We’ve heard a lot of frustration from restaurants located in the congestion zone that many of their product and service providers are adding congestion pricing surcharges to their bills or increasing prices to offset the fee, making it even more expensive to run a small business,” Rigie said.

“We warned all along that congestion pricing would result in price increases and surcharges to small businesses, making it even more expensive to run a restaurant or bar,” he added. “That’s exactly what’s happening, and why they should exempt these essential goods from the fee because they must be driven into the zone and can’t be delivered on the subway or a bus. A restaurant’s fish delivery can’t take the 6 train.”

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Andrew Rigie, executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, told The Post several restaurants have reported “business is off” and have blamed congestion pricing for declining foot traffic since January.Robert Miller

Food distributor Sysco told businesses that it would be adding a $1 “congestion charge,” in addition to an existing fuel charge, to all deliveries within the “impacted area,” The Post previously reported.

Cintas, which provides uniforms, aprons and cleaning supplies, increased its prices on Jan. 5 – the same day congestion pricing took effect.

The two suppliers that don’t charge Caron congestion fee-related surcharges — Baldor and Ace — “mentioned that [congestion pricing] might be reflected on the prices, so we don’t really know where the cost is being distributed,” Caron said.

A rep for Baldor denied that the company has increased its prices due to congestion pricing — but Caron maintains “the prices went up for sure” after Jan. 5. A rep for Ace did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Baldor’s senior vice president of logistics Seth Gottlieb previously told The Post its plan is to “offset the cost internally.”

“We are trying to stay above 60th Street and search for opportunities for our customers to take deliveries overnight,” Gottlieb added.

Congestion pricing will cost the distributor up to $500,000 a year under the current plan, he said.

In a statement issued last month, Baldor affirmed that it wouldn’t be issuing tolling-related surcharges to its restaurant clients — but smaller distributors that can’t absorb the cost will have to pass it along.

“Ultimately, that means small businesses, like restaurants and bodegas, see their costs rise,” the distributor wrote, “and they, too, find themselves with no other option but to pass on the added cost to end consumers.”

https://nypost.com/2025/04/04/us-news/trendy-west-village-eatery-blames-congestion-pricing-for-impending-closure-were-just-open-to-pay-bills/

3 alleged MS-13 gang members charged in decade-old murder; Bondi warns ‘more arrests coming’

 Three alleged MS-13 gangbangers have been charged in the decade-old killing of a rival gang member in Florida who was stabbed roughly 100 times and then shot, US Attorney General Pam Bondi said Friday.

The suspects were slapped with federal charges last month for allegedly participating in the slaying of 22-year-old Gerson Vilelio Vasquez-Portillo in Palm Beach back in 2015, according to authorities.

The recent arrests were part of a multi-agency operation that resulted in a total of nine alleged MS-13 gang members being nabbed in connection with four murders in the Sunshine State in 2014 and 2015.  

Bondi dropped news of the arrests as she sought to highlight the Trump administration’s vow to crackdown on members of the violent, blood-thirsty gang.

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“These gangs are organized. They are terrorists. And look at these guys, they thought they got away with it for almost a decade but they did not,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said about the federal murder charges.AFP via Getty Images

“More arrests are coming,” Bondi said alongside law enforcement officials in Fort Lauderdale. “If you are a gang member living in this country, I’d self-deport right now because we’re coming after you.”

Jose “Chango” Ezequiel Gamez-Maravilla, Wilber “Blue” Rosendo Navarro-Escobar and Hugo “Power” Adiel Bermudez-Martinez were the latest to be slapped with charges over the savage stabbing and shooting of the rival gangbanger in 2015.

The three other violent killings in South Florida were also carried out using knives or machetes, authorities said.

The cases were only reopened in 2020 after initially going cold.

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The arrests were part of a multi-agency operation named Operation Sombra De La Bestia, or Operation Shadow of the Beast.AFP via Getty Images

Wilson Tirado-Silva, Miguel Cabrera Granados and Melvin David Cruz-Ortiz were charged in connection with the 2014 murder of 18-year-old Joel Antonio Canizales-Lara, who was lured to a field and then knifed to death after falsely claiming he was part of the gang, authorities said.

The victim’s remains, which were dumped in a makeshift grave in the aftermath, were only recovered in 2021.

Meanwhile, Omar DeJesus Gutierrez, 18, was shot dead after he flashed a rival gang sign in 2015.

Alleged MS-13 leader Andy Tovar ordered Tirado-Silva to carry out that killing, authorities said.

And Tirado-Silva and Cruz-Ortiz were both also nabbed in the 2015 murder of Chrislet Ondina, 25, who was killed as part of a gang initiation for one of the perps.

“Nine MS-13 terrorists have been taken off our streets and four cold murder cases have been solved thanks to the great investigative work of the FBI and our law enforcement partners,” Bondi said.

“Let this be a lesson: no matter how long it takes, we will never give up in our pursuit of justice.”

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Family members of homicide victims listen as Bondi holds a press conference about MS-13 gang activity at the Broward County Sheriff’s Office Research, Development and Training Center in Fort Lauderdale.AFP via Getty Images

Over the past decade, the Justice Department has intensified its focus on MS-13, which originated as a neighborhood street gang in Los Angeles but grew into a transnational gang based in El Salvador.

The gang now has strongholds in Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico, as well as thousands of members across the US.

“These vicious and callous acts by MS-13 not only shattered lives but also undermined the safety and security of South Florida communities,” said Hayden P. O’Byrne, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

“Through my office’s unwavering partnership with other federal, state, and local law enforcement, we are sending a clear message to those who inflict violence, feed drug addiction, or cause other harm to the people of our district: We will find you; we will prosecute you; and we will apply the full force of American justice.”

https://nypost.com/2025/04/04/us-news/alleged-ms-13-gang-members-charged-in-brutal-florida-murder/