HONG KONG, May 22 (Reuters) - CK Hutchison ( CKHUF )

confirmed on Thursday that Italian billionaire Gianluigi

Aponte's family-run MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company is the

main investor in a group seeking to buy 43 ports from the Hong

Kong conglomerate.

Hutchison co-managing director Dominic Lai was speaking at

the company's annual general meeting following weeks of scrutiny

and criticism in China of its proposal to sell most of its $22.8

billion global ports business to a consortium led by U.S.

investment firm BlackRock ( BLK ).

When asked if the Swiss-headquartered MSC shipping empire,

which is controlled by the Aponte family, was the major

investor, Lai said: "Yes, it has been from the beginning."

CK Hutchison ( CKHUF ) has not previously disclosed the exact

ownership of each investor in the consortium.

MSC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on

Lai's remarks.

The sale of assets, which would include two ports along the

strategically important Panama Canal, has become highly

politicised at a time of intensifying U.S.-China trade tensions.

In April, China's top market regulator said it was paying

close attention to CK Hutchison's ( CKHUF ) planned sale and that parties

to the deal should not try to avoid an antitrust review.

CK Hutchison ( CKHUF ), controlled by tycoon Li Ka-shing, said this

month that the deal would strictly adhere to all required

compliance standards.

The proposed sale has also drawn the attention of U.S.

President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly expressed his desire

to reduce Chinese influence around the Panama Canal and termed

the deal a "reclaiming" of the waterway.