Glencore Xstrata CEO Betting Big on Coal

Bloomberg reported that Ivan Glasenberg, CEO of Glencore Xstrata plc (LSE:GLEN), is pushing his company to invest more in thermal coal than its three closest competitors, namely BHP Billiton Ltd. (ASX:BHP,NYSE:BHP,LSE:BLT), Anglo American plc (LSE:AAL) and Rio Tinto plc (ASX:RIO,NYSE:RIO,LSE:RIO).

As quoted in the market news:

‘This is a classic counter-cyclical acquisitive strategy that Ivan Glasenberg has made his name in,’ said Paul Gait, a mining analyst in London at Sanford C. Bernstein Ltd. who rates Glencore outperform. ‘Everybody is bearish thermal coal.’

Competitors are ‘running their business according to a balance-sheet constraint that is either to preserve capital and credit ratings rather than a desire to maximize value,’ Gait said. ‘That creates opportunities.’

Click here to read the full Bloomberg report.