Why Glencore Xstrata merger may not be good news for consumer
Yesterday Swiss commodities trader Glencore announced its intention to acquire all remaining shares of mining company Xstrata. Glencore is said to control 60 percent of zinc, 50 percent of copper, 30 percent of aluminium, 25 percent of coal, 10 percent of grain and 3 percent of oil worldwide. Xstrata is a major miner of coal and nickel among other minerals. Together the companies based in Zug will become one of the biggest players in the commodities sector, with an equity market value of $90 billion. Should we be worried? Will other corporations have to join up such a global giant? WRS’s Dave Goodman talks to Swiss business journalist Daniel Ammann: