Conservative Occidental Buys Phibro

Occidental Petroleum Corp. has decided that it will purchase Citigroup’s Phibro business, a surprising move considering Occidental’s traditionally conservative leanings. Acquiring Phibro means that Occidental will enter the notoriously volatile world of oil trading, a market that brings great risk with the potential for significant rewards.
The company will pay $250 million for Phibro, its net asset value, allowing it to take advantage of Phibro’s several expert traders to help Occidental minimize risk and maximize reward as it begins to trade energy derivatives. Occidental joins a variety of other oil giants that have long been big players in energy trading markets, …read more