China's Dakang Australia has been looking forward to sign a deal to buy Kidman, one of the Australia's biggest beef producers and owner of farm assets. However, the deal could be cancelled as the Australian government said it found that selling more than 100,000 square kilometers of the country's land to foreigner not right. The farm takes an area which is roughly the size of Kentucky.

The Australian government expressed concern over deal saying the deal is "contrary to the national interest." The Chinese company has time till Thursday to respond to the government, but it looks likely they have already lost the deal. This deal would also pose problems for Australian bidders who would find it difficult to compete.

The Chinese company and its local partner, Australian Rural Capital, want to buy Kidman and 77,300 square kilometers of its land for $370 million Australian dollars ($283 million). Dakang partnered with ARC, which was planning to take a 20% stake, in order to overcome opposition that shows concern over selling so much land to foreigners.

“The size and significance of the portfolio, combined with the impact the decision may have on broader Australian support for foreign investment in Australian agriculture, must also to be taken into account in this case,” said Australian Treasurer Scott Morrison, who blocked the deal.

Kidman was founded in 1899 by Sidney Kidman, who became known as the Cattle King. The company is Australia’s largest private landowner. Last year, suitor for Kidman was Shanghai Pengxin. Morrison blocked the sale saying that could undermine national security as the Anna Creek ranch is close to a weapons testing range.

A report published in Brisbane Times revealed, "The Turnbull government has thrown doubt over foreign investment in Australia after announcing it would again block the sale of Australia's largest private land holding to Chinese interests."

But the ruling has left Chinese investors fuming and the sellers, S. Kidman & Co, scratching their heads over the process and the Treasurer's public comments. It has also inflamed tensions in the business community, who fear damage to Australia's sovereign risk from the inconsistency of government decision-making.

"Increasingly, they feel a lot of decisions are being made for potential political point scoring, as opposed to the criteria set out in the legislation," he said. "We need to be protecting the message we are sending to foreign capital, especially from China."

"Consider that in the aftermath of the Coalition's 2013 election victory, Hockey was the star of the side. Strong performances in Parliament and his easygoing manner had many speculating he had become the logical successor to Abbott. The likes of Malcolm Turnbull were headed for the dustbin," according to a news report published by ARF.

The Fairfax/Nielsen poll taken two months before the budget found that despite Hockey's frequent dire warnings about the content of the coming budget, he had one of the highest approval ratings in Parliament and held a commanding lead over his opposition counterpart, Chris Bowen, as preferred treasurer.

According to a report in SMH by Mark Kenny, "This is politics, election-style necessitated by the fact that by this time next week, the country will have either entered care-taker mode beginning a gargantuan campaign, or will be within hours of doing so. After that, executive government will become severely limited."

The scale of this one magnifies it again. Politically, Morrison has read this correctly. Any sovereign risk communicated to foreign investors, is plausibly explained - even if many will suspect a sibilant racial element to the judgment.