PARIS, July 29 (Reuters) - French shipping giant CMA CGM

said on Tuesday it is interested in taking over some of CK

Hutchison's ( CKHUF ) ports after the Hong Kong conglomerate's

exclusive talks ended with a consortium led by BlackRock ( BLK )

this week.

CK Hutchison ( CKHUF ) agreed in March to sell the majority of its

$22.8 billion global ports business to the consortium also

including Italian billionaire Gianluigi Aponte's family-run

shipping company MSC, but the exclusive talks expired on Sunday.

Gaining a stake in CK Hutchison's ( CKHUF ) 43 terminals in 23

countries included in the preliminary deal would offer CMA CGM

greater control over the supply chain, especially if it can get

hold of one of the ports along the Panama Canal.

"It's very important for the industry, and it's important

for us as a major player in this sector," CMA CGM Chief

Financial Officer Ramon Fernandez told reporters during the

presentation of the company's second quarter results.

"We are present in 65 terminals around the world so we are

following this operation very closely and are naturally

interested in participating," he added.

CMA CGM already has 65 port terminals around the world.

CK Hutchison ( CKHUF ) said on Monday it was in talks with the

consortium to add a Chinese "major strategic investor" to the

bid and sources told Reuters Chinese shipping giant COSCO was

looking to join.

CMA CGM, the world's third-largest container shipping line,

reported virtually stable sales in the second quarter at $13.2

billion, while net profit fell to $521 million from $661 million

a year earlier.

The group remained cautious about its outlook for the second

half of the year, citing geopolitical and macroeconomic

uncertainties.

Global container trade grew by over 4% in the first five

months of 2025, driven mainly by a rise in China's exports.

While China's exports to the U.S. dropped 8%, those to Southeast

Asia rose 18%, to the Middle East 15%, and to the EU 11%.

The new EU-US deal will require operators to adapt, but it

only concerns about 2% of global container trade so the direct

impact will be limited compared to the much larger shifts

between China and the U.S., Fernandez said.