some quotations Shares in Nexen and Progress vacillated wildly late Friday afternoon.
“I have never seen this in my life,” one industry source said, adding: “This is comical. Can you imagine how a U.S. investor looks at this? They will think we are Disneyland. Brutal.”
Another trader offered several theories: “Someone seems to be making a bet,” the trader said, while also suggesting it’s possible there was a “fat finger” trading error. That likelihood diminished, however, when Nexen shares began to settle at a lower price.
The decision on both takeovers is expected to coincide with details on new foreign-investment guidelines that will signal to Asian governments and their state-owned enterprises the extent of Canada’s appetite for further takeovers in key sectors.
Ottawa has spent months drafting those new rules and deliberating the two takeovers in a lengthy review that, at one point, led to the rejection of the Progress deal before Petronas refiled. Petronas first announced its takeover of Progress on June 28. The CNOOC-Nexen deal was announced July 23.
On Friday afternoon, with a decision imminent, Eric Nuttall, portfolio manager for the Sprott Energy Fund, described himself as “nervous.”
“The importance of this decision cannot be understated. It will shape the competitive landscape and investment attractiveness of the industry for years to come,” he said.