Until BHP Billiton came around, the price of potash and PotashCorp were moving pretty much in unison. The mineral’s price increased fourfold in 2008, peaking at more than $800 a tonne. The PotashCorp share price also quadrupled to a high of $241. Both then declined, the mineral to about $400 a tonne and the shares to a pre-bid $110. The parallel price falls would have been even steeper if the potash industry had not cut production by 40 per cent.
在必和必拓(BHP Billiton)對加拿大鉀肥(PotashCorp)發起收購前,后者的股價與鉀肥價格的走勢幾乎是步調一致的。2008年,鉀肥價格上漲了3倍,達到每噸逾800美元的歷史最高水平。同期,加拿大鉀肥的股價也上漲了3倍,至每股241美元的高點。之后,二者價格雙雙下跌,鉀肥價格降至每噸約400美元,而加拿大鉀肥股價則降至提出收購前的110美元。若不是鉀肥行業減產40%,二者的降幅還可能更大。