Trafigura SWOT and PESTLE Analysis

Strength

1. Industry leader with strong growth and efficiency: Trafigura has witnessed strong growth for all its divisions in the past decade. This leading global commodity trading firm has seen an upward swing in revenues from $79.2 billion in 2010 to $180.7bn in 2018. Combined volumes of commodities traded jumped to 371.1mmt in 2018 from 264.4mmt in 2016. Metals and minerals revenue has seen an average 32% growth over the past 3 fiscals from 2015 to 2018. By pure numbers in 2018, Trafigura traded 2.1bn Oil and Petroleum Products barrels, $53.8bn of total assets, 18.5mmt Metals, 77.4mmt minerals.
The commodity trading giant is the world’s largest trader by volume of oil and petroleum products. Trafigura is also the world’s largest metals and minerals traders who engage in off-take and supply agreements with miners and smelters and strategically invest in logistics via Impala Terminals to enhance market access for clients. Efficiency and improvements in the risk management that the company leaders have created by investing significant sums in information technology and in creating consolidated mid- and back-office support centers in Mumbai, Montevideo and Shanghai have proved to be the key reasons behind the growth of the company. Trafigura leverages benefits of a strategic business model based on trading two different and largely uncorrelated groups of commodities.

2. Robust growth in challenging market conditions: Uncertainty and dynamic change have been prevalent throughout 2016 in the commodities market with global resources industry struggling with over-supply and dropping prices. Against this backdrop, Trafigura Group delivered a robust commercial and financial performance in the 12-month period to 30 September 2016, with significant growth in trading volumes and strong profitability, albeit somewhat reduced from the record trading result achieved in the 2015 financial year. Net profit for the year was USD975 million, 12 percent lower than the figure of USD1103 million in 2015. Gross profit was USD2291 million, also 12 percent down year-on-year, while revenue was flat at USD98,098 million, compared to USD97,237 million in 2015. Again fiscal 2018, being marked by great volatility across the commodity sectors and cut-throat competition in the energy space, Trafigura accomplished robust financial performance. Net profit for the fiscal touched USD 873 million, a dip of less than 2 percent from the figure of USD887 million in 2017. Gross profit rose 6 percent to stand at USD2.4 billion, pitted against USD2.2 billion in 2017.

3. Excellent corporate leadership and transparency: Trafigura Group has been committed to provide excellent corporate leadership and transparency in its functioning. They had established two new management committees, one to oversee trading and the other to supervise investments. The Trading Committee manages the group’s trading activities within the financial and operating parameters established by the Board. The Investment Committee is responsible for defining and implementing an investment strategy, as well as the portfolio management and risk framework for the Group and its subsidiaries. Both these bodies have enabled the company to promote talented individuals from the trading divisions to more senior positions and to start building the company’s next generation of leaders. The Company sets a transparency benchmark, by publishing a Responsibility Report every year. It leads the industry in transparency by reporting its payments to National Oil Companies in EITI countries for purchases of oil and gas. The Responsibility Report throws open an environmental disclosure highlighting precise measuring of greenhouse gas emissions, the company’s recently defined Climate Change Strategy, and an account of Trafigura’s Responsible Sourcing initiatives of minerals from high-risk locales.

The remaining section of “Strength” is available only in the 'Complete Report' on purchase.

Weakness

This section is available only in the 'Complete Report' on purchase.

Opportunity

This section is available only in the 'Complete Report' on purchase.

Threat

This section is available only in the 'Complete Report' on purchase.

Political

1. Effects of Trump’s policies and Brexit: Recent years under Trump administration habe seen a hike in inflation along with federal tightening of regulations which caused the US dollar (USD) to get the boost towards the end of the year. Due to this, the Chinese RMB and the British Pound (GBP) have both fallen drastically. The Euro has also been affected by changing policies between the US and the EU as well as due to increased political risks in the face of upcoming elections in various EU member states. The stronger USD has also prevented the rise of commodity prices in a time when production costs have fallen and consuming nations are finding it difficult to import oil and metals.

Economic

This section is available only in the 'Complete Report' on purchase.

Social

1. Growing demand for products to maintain social status in emerging markets: With the growth of economy also comes the growth in living standards of the people of the country. People will have more purchasing power with increase in their income, with the rise in income also increases the need to maintain and showcase the status to the society. Almost all of Trafigura’s commodities will get benefited from this need.

Technological

This section is available only in the 'Complete Report' on purchase.

Legal

This section is available only in the 'Complete Report' on purchase.

Environmental

This section is available only in the 'Complete Report' on purchase.