FTSE 100 lower on worries over global economy August 29, 2012 The UK’s blue chip index opened lower this morning, with concerns over the health of the global economy and falling metal prices dragging shares down. Russian oil and gas company Ruspetro led the fallers, shedding 8.41 per cent in early trading as investors reacted negatively to news that it swung to a loss in the [...]
Norway raises Xstrata stake August 28, 2012 NORWAY yesterday emerged as the latest shareholder to have increased its stake in Xstrata, posing another stumbling block to the miner’s biggest shareholder Glencore as it tries to get a grip on its plans to merge with the group. Norges Bank Investment Management, which manages Norway’s $610bn sovereign wealth fund, has been steadily buying Xstrata [...]
FTSE flat as gloomy forecasts from Japan highlight worldwide slump August 28, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index ended flat yesterday, with the market stagnating as expectations for economic stimulus measures were countered by concerns over global growth, which was reinforced by gloomy forecasts from Japan. The government in Tokyo cut its economic assessment yesterday, citing the impact of a slowdown in the United States and China on top [...]
Qatar increases holding in Xstrata August 23, 2012 Qatar Holdings, the second-largest shareholder in Xstrata after Glencore, has bought nearly £24m of shares in the takeover target. It takes its holding in Xstrata to more than 12 per cent. Qatar has been raising its stake in the miner since July, and formerly owned just less than 11 per cent of the company. The [...]
ISS attacks Xstrata deal August 22, 2012 SHAREHOLDER advisory group ISS last night recommended investors vote against the proposed merger of commodities trader Glencore with miner Xstrata, the latest threat to an increasingly troubled deal. The influential American research organisation said it could not back the deal because it had “marginal” economic merit and because Glencore’s handling of the merger process “has raised several [...]
There’s no sign of blinking yet from dealmaker Glasenberg August 21, 2012 WHEN he announced the UK’s largest ever merger in February of this year, Glencore chief executive Ivan Glasenberg did so with a massive endorsement of the industrial logic behind such a deal. Here was one of the world’s most successful commodities trading groups getting together with a massively powerful resources group in which it already [...]
Glencore ready to pull out of Xstrata merger August 21, 2012 GLENCORE’s high-profile merger with Xstrata is not a “must-do deal”, its chief executive admitted yesterday, after the commodities trading giant reported a 26 per cent slide in profits in the first half of the year. Chief executive Ivan Glasenberg said that if the $30bn (£19bn) “merger of equals” weren’t to go ahead, “it wouldn’t be [...]
Advisers JP Morgan Cazenove August 21, 2012 JP Morgan Cazenove is acting as a financial adviser for Heritage during the sale of its stake in Miran Block to Genel Energy. It has worked with Heritage since its IPO back in 2008. Barry Weir, James Taylor and Neil Haycock are the lead advisers on the deal. Weir, who heads the natural resources team [...]
Eurozone chatter helps lift the FTSE 100 in very light volumes August 21, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index advanced yesterday in light trade, led up by miners and banking stocks, as investors speculated as to how Eurozone policy makers would tackle the region’s debt crisis. The FTSE 100 ended up 33.15 points, or 0.6 per cent, at 5,857.52, having shed 0.5 per cent on Monday, in volume at around [...]
Glencore offers no Xstrata clues as profit falls August 21, 2012 Commodities trader Glencore stuck to its guns on a $30bn (£19bn) bid for miner Xstrata today, as it reported earnings for the first half of 2012 dragged down 26 per cent by weaker commodity prices. Glencore said its first half profit net of significant items fell to $1.81bn, down from $2.44bn a year ago and [...]