This aerial view shows the Taiwanese cargo ship Yang Ming sailing out of the Panama Canal on the Pacific side in Panama City on October 6, 2025. Martin Bernetti | Afp | Getty Images A simmering dispute over two container ports at either end of the Panama Canal risks becoming a geopolitical flashpoint between the world’s two largest economies: the U.S. and China. It follows a contentious decision from Panama’s top court voiding a license of a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison for operating two key terminals on the waterway, through which some 40% of all U.S. container traffic transits every year. The ruling was seen as a major victory for the U.S., given that the White House has made blocking China’s influence over the global trade artery one of its top priorities. China has sought to raise the stakes in recent days. In its strongest rebuke yet, Beijing warned on Wednesday that the Central American country “will inevitably pay a heavy price both politically and economically,” unless it changes course. The Hong Kong and …