Casting a shadow on the security situation prevailing in Pakistan, the Pakistan general manager of the Chinese shipping major, Cosco Shipping Lines Company, was shot dead in Karachi, the financial hub of the country, Reuters has reported.

Chen Zhu, 45 was in his car in an upscale area in Karachi, when the car was shot at and Zhu died from a bullet wound to the head.

“The incident appears to be targeted attack, doesn’t look like a mugging,” said Azad Khan, deputy inspector general of Karachi’s south zone.

Although Pakistan is struggling with home-grown terrorism, China has invested close to $57 billion in Pakistan towards the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Last June, Islamic State (IS) had kidnapped and killed two Chinese nationals in Baluchistan underscoring the dire security situation in Pakistan.

While no group has claimed responsibility of the attack yet, China had in December issued warnings to its citizens in Pakistan owing to imminent threats to Chinese targets.

China faces a threat from Uighur IS extremists who’ve vowed that blood will 'flow in rivers' in China because of its treatment of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang.

Geng Shuang, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, while speaking to reporters in Beijing said that the Chinese consulate had asked the Pakistani police to bring the killer to justice.