By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com
Glencore International received approval from China’s Ministry of Commerce on Friday for its purchase of Canadian grain handler Viterra Inc. in a $6.1 billion dollar deal that was expected to close by July. This signals one of the largest global agricultural industry acquisitions in history. Viterra, which has operations in China and several other countries, said that it now expects the deal to be finalized by Dec. 17, 2012. Viterra shares reached a seven-month low in October, which can be largely attributed to concerns over delays of the takeover. Shares closed at $15.85 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Thursday. Glencore shares were down 1.2% at 441.4 pence on the London Stock Exchange on Friday. It was speculated that China was holding off on the decision for approval until the Canadian government would approve their takeover of Nexen Inc. by China’s CNOOC Ltd. The announcement on Friday was the last outstanding regulatory barrier for the acquisition.