BHP adamant on possible bid for WMC

摘要

BHP Billiton remains in the hunt for WMC Resources, with a crack internal team assessing its options in making a counter-bid to the hostile and politically controversial 7.4 billion dollars bid for WMC from the acquisitive Zug-based Xstrata. Commodity market sources disclosed that in the lead-up to Christmas, the team was busy canvassing external opinions and thoughts on the integration of WMC's copper production with BHP Billiton's own, as well as future supply-demand and other issues involved in the uranium market. The prospect of a rival bid - Rio Tinto and others are also possible contenders - comes as WMC works towards a January 5 or 6 lodgement of its target's statement in response to Xstrata's 6.35 dollars-a-share bid - one WMC has already said is grossly inadequate.