London - Glencore [JSE:GLN], the miner-cum-trader trying to reduce debt as commodity prices slump, said it’s studying the possibility of an initial public offering for its agricultural trading business.
The share sale is one option as the company looks for deals to increase cash, chief financial officer Steve Kalmin said on a call with investors on Thursday. Glencore lifted its target for raising money from disposals today to $3bn to $4bn from $2bn.
The Swiss-based company had already said it plans to sell a minority stake in the agricultural business, which trades commodities from wheat to cotton, to one or several strategic investors and has started talks with several possible buyers.
The company is seeking to trim its net debt to between $18bn and $19bn by the end of 2016, it said on Thursday in a statement. That’s less than the company said in September, when it promised to cut debt by about a third to about $20bn.