One of Asia’s richest men has dismissed a personal attack from China’s ruling party mouthpiece as a “brouhaha” after it criticised his sale of some mainland assets as immoral and ungrateful amid a worsening downturn.

The unusually personal online attack from Peoples’ Daily on Li Ka-shing, the 87-year-old Hong Kong property, telecoms and port tycoon worth nearly $33bn, followed a spate of articles in mainland media online criticising him for apparently withdrawing from China via a series of asset sales, and domiciling his flagship vehicles offshore, rather than in Hong Kong, following a reorganisation earlier this year.

Mr Li, who as a teenager fled the war-torn mainland in poverty and began his business empire producing plastic flowers, is considered an inspiration by many in China and Hong Kong, where he has been dubbed “superman” by the local press for his investing prowess.