The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[DewDiligence]

BHP’s Marius Kloppers was highly ranked in Barron’s annual
ranking of CEOs. See #msg-56504839 for additional color.

http://online.barrons.com/article/SB50001424052970203296504576223573436157008.html

Kloppers has exactly what the developing world needs—a gargantuan supply of raw materials. His Australian-based company is the biggest miner on earth, with operations in 25 countries. Billiton churns out iron ore, coal, lead, zinc, copper and even diamonds, adding up to a market value of $235 billion.

Kloppers, a 48-year-old native of South Africa, takes a cerebral approach to the job. After earning a doctoral degree in engineering and an MBA, he put in a stint with McKinsey and then in 1993 went to work for Billiton's predecessor.

While his recent attempts at mega-mergers have been unsuccessful, including last year's $39 billion bid for Canada's Potash, Kloppers has continued to expand the company with smaller acquisitions, including the recent addition of nearly $5 billion in U.S. natural gas assets.

Look for him to keep mining for big acquisition candidates: Billiton has a cash hoard of $16 billion [but most of it has now been committed to cap-ex and share buybacks: #msg-61382100].