Xstrata has put the brakes on the proposed hostile takeover attempt of rival Anglo American PLC, a deal worth US$47-billion that would have created one of the largest mining companies in the world.
The move follows months of courting Anglo shareholders after the company's board of directors openly rejected the idea.
Xstrata was challenged by United Kingdom regulators to "put up or shut up," meaning the company must put an official offer on the table or else be faced with a six-month restriction on making further advances on Anglo American. Xstrata officially withdrew itself from the process just days prior to the Oct. 20 deadline.
The proposal is the second such deal Xstrata has walked away from in the space of a year, putting aside a takeover bid for platinum Lonmin PLC in October 2008. The company bought Sudbury miner Falconbridge in 2005.
.jpeg;w=120;h=80;mode=crop)
