Noble Group expands oil business despite price rout

It hired three traders from BP.

Embattled commodity merchant Noble Group is expanding its Singapore oil team to focus on growing regional demand despite a price rout that has hurt some companies trading crude oil and refined products, according to a report by Reuters.

The report said that Noble is expanding its oil desk even as it remains under pressure from a dispute that started when little-known Iceberg Research accused it of inflating its asset values.

Despite the price rout, Noble has hired three middle distillates traders from BP to join two existing traders for jet fuel and gasoil, and has also added three crude traders to start trading physical cargoes in Asia, sources close to the matter said.

Read the full report here.