Olam takeover by Temasek

Temasek Unit’s Offer for Olam Is Credit Negative, Moody’s Says; By Lisa Pham and Colin Keatinge Mar 17, 2014; http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-17/temasek-unit-s-offer-for-olam-is-credit-negative-moody-s-says.html; The offer by Temasek Holdings Pte’s unit to take over Olam International Ltd. (OLAM) is credit negative for the Singapore state-owned investment company, according to Moody’s Investors Service. The acquisition, which values one of the world’s top three coffee and rice traders at S$5.3 billion ($4.2 billion), will put pressure on Temasek’s “portfolio liquidity,” Moody’s, which rates the investment firm at Aaa, said in a March 17 report. Olam’s 2 percent dividend yield in 2013 is also lower than Temasek’s return of about 3 percent, it said. “Bringing a new company under the Singapore umbrella negatively pressures portfolio liquidity,” Alan Greene, a senior credit officer at Moody’s, said in the report, which estimates 65 percent of Temasek’s S$215 billion investments are in Singapore dollars.

Singapore Business Times on 18 March 2014 reported that "market talk revealed that there have been at least three separate parties interested in acquiring Olam during the same period, potentially pushing up its share price as well..... Sime Darby, one of the largest palm oil producers in the world, is said to be one of them. Two Japanese trading companies are also said to be interested in Olam due to its exposure to African markets...." newslink: http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/premium/companies/others/moodys-olam-bid-temasek-credit-negative-20140318