NewMont to Buy Barrick?
Globe says Barrick could be at mercy of Newmont
2021-05-06 09:00 ET - In the News
Also In the News (C-NGT) Newmont Corp
The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that Mark Bristow, Barrick Gold's chief executive officer, is ruing a lost opportunity to buy a large U.S. copper miner at a bargain basement price, and is now opening the door to a merger with great rival Newmont. The Globe's Niall McGee writes that just over a year ago, when the price of copper was in the pits, Mr. Bristow openly pondered a friendly deal with Freeport-McMoRan. Had the transaction happened, Mr. Bristow may well have been hailed as a genius, as copper this year has marched to a near record high thanks in part to rebounding demand in China and speculative demand. Freeport made it clear it was not interested in any kind of deal with Barrick. During a conference call with analysts Wednesday, Mr. Bristow acknowledged the Freeport ship had sailed, and hinted that mistakes were made along the way. "Maybe we should have done it a little differently," Mr. Bristow said.
Now Barrick has found itself in a slightly vulnerable spot. Newmont Gold, the world's biggest gold miner, has soundly outperformed Barrick over the past 12 months.
While Barrick and Newmont were once close in stock-market valuation, Newmont could now be in the aggressor's position.