Reading Time: 2 minutes Paris/Winnipeg | Reuters — Global commodity trader Louis Dreyfus has agreed to sell its fertilizer business to Canada’s Agrium as it continues an overhaul in response to tough agricultural markets. Louis Dreyfus is to sell Macrofertil Australia, which has annual sales of around US$120 million, to Agrium’s Australian unit Landmark Operations in a deal expected […] Read more
Dreyfus to sell Australian fertilizer unit to Agrium
Dreyfus shareholders agree to arbitration over stake sale
Reading Time: 2 minutes Amsterdam/Paris | Reuters — Family shareholders of commodity trader Louis Dreyfus have agreed to arbitration talks to settle a long-running dispute over a share sale, sources familiar with the matter have told Reuters. The tussle concerns an attempt by minority shareholders to sell nearly 17 per cent of the group’s holding firm to Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, […] Read more
Dreyfus sees recovery after two-year profit slide
Reading Time: 2 minutes Paris | Reuters — Louis Dreyfus’ core earnings fell for a second year in 2016 amid a persistent high supply of crops, but the agricultural commodity trader said a revamp of operations should help results this year. Large inventories, low prices and limited volatility have curbed margins in the past two years for companies that […] Read more
Louis Dreyfus stems profit slide, but headwinds persist
Reading Time: 2 minutes Paris | Reuters — Agricultural trading giant Louis Dreyfus Company eked out a small rise in 2016 first-half net profit, saying steady shipped volumes helped it weather another tough period in commodity markets. Louis Dreyfus has been grappling with ample supply, lower prices and slower economic growth that have cut margins, while also going through […] Read more
Canadian canola exporters book sales to China
Reading Time: 2 minutes Winnipeg | Reuters — Canadian exporters are making small sales of canola to China under Beijing’s stricter terms, an industry group and three sources said, possibly undermining Ottawa’s hardline negotiating stance with the world’s top market for the oilseed. The dispute over the new shipping standard, which industry groups in the world’s biggest canola exporter […] Read more
Ex-Dreyfus CEO leaves board in latest shakeup
Reading Time: 2 minutes Paris | Reuters — Global agricultural trader Louis Dreyfus Co. announced board changes on Thursday in which former CEO Serge Schoen will leave the group, another step in a leadership shakeup under main shareholder Margarita Louis-Dreyfus. Schoen oversaw rapid growth at the trading house as CEO between 2005 and 2013. Last year, Louis Dreyfus promoted […] Read more
Louis Dreyfus reports lower profits, seeks partners
Reading Time: 2 minutes Paris | Reuters — Louis Dreyfus is seeking partners for some of its businesses to help the commodity trading group to weather a market downturn that hit full-year profits. Lower prices, plentiful supply and faltering economic growth in emerging economies have put pressure on commodity traders such as Louis Dreyfus that collect, export and process […] Read more
An open market is still a work in progress
A truly open market requires transparency of information, but the veil is still being lifted
Reading Time: 5 minutes When the Canadian Wheat Board lost its monopoly in 2012, Blair Rutter predicted that it would take 10 years to adjust to an open market system. “Moving from a centrally planned system to a market economy, it takes a while,” the executive director at the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association said in an interview. “We […] Read more
Louis Dreyfus ring-fences some units, considers options
Reading Time: 2 minutes London | Reuters — Louis Dreyfus Commodities is ring-fencing its crop inputs, metals, juice and dairy units and is considering options ranging from joint ventures to the sale of certain assets, a senior company source said. In December, Reuters reported the trade house had been seeking buyers for its juice and fertilizer units for some […] Read more
Dreyfus owner pregnant, plans maternity leave
Reading Time: < 1 minute Paris | Reuters — Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, majority owner and chairwoman of global trading house Louis Dreyfus Commodities, is pregnant with twins and plans to take short maternity leave following the birth due in early April, the company said. Louis-Dreyfus, 53, will continue as chair of the group’s supervisory board until the birth of the twin […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
