Description

‘Gripping’ Economist
‘Jaw-dropping’ Sunday Times
‘Riveting’ Financial Times
‘Fascinating’ Reuters

We are entering an age of energy crises and food shortages. This book reveals why.

Meet the swashbuckling traders who supply the world with energy, food and metal.

Their goal: To make billions by buying and selling raw materials – flogging Russian gas to Europe, Saudi oil to America and Congolese metals to Silicon Valley.

Their methods: Whatever it takes – whether funnelling cash to Vladimir Putin’s sanction-stricken Kremlin, schmoozing Russian metal oligarchs after the collapse of the Soviet Union, or striking deals with the Libyan rebels at the height of the Arab Spring.

These are the commodity traders. You’ve probably never heard of them. But, like it or not, you’re one of their customers.

*Financial Times and Economist Book of the Year*
*Shortlisted for the Financial Times & McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award*

‘Shows how much money and global influence is concentrated in the hands of a tiny group . . . Remarkable . . . As the authors roam from oilfield to wheatfield, they reveal information so staggering you almost gasp’ Sunday Times

‘A globe-spanning corporate thriller, full of intrigue and double dealing . . . Changes how we see the world, often in horrifying ways’ Spectator

‘A rich archive of ripping yarns . . . The high level narrative is gripping enough. But it is the details of what these freewheeling companies actually got up to that give the book a thriller-like quality’ Financial Times

‘Some of the stories could be straight out of John le Carre. The difference is they’re true’ Andrew Neil

Publisher Review

A fascinating, sometimes hair-raising new book . . . A book which on the one hand tells us some really important things about the nature of money, power and the nature of the modern economy, but on the other is just full of some of the most fascinating stories. -- Matthew Taylor * RSA Bridges to the Future * The captivating stories of the powerful commodity traders and mystery actors of markets and geopolitics -- Roula Khalaf, FT Editor-in-Chief - Summer Books 2021 * Financial Times * The blistering tale of a clutch of hard-charging international commodity trading houses such as Cargill and Glencore. The authors, both former FT journalists, trace how they harnessed the commodity boom and the setbacks they now face as climate change casts a shadow over their business model. -- Andrew Hill, FT & McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award Longlist * Financial Times * A very impressive profile of an industry that has long preferred to avoid the spotlight . . . The authors deftly weave stories of the individual traders and their trades with an account of the major shifts in the global economy of the past 70 years . . . Extensively researched and well written throughout . . . I would not hesitate to recommend this book. -- International Affairs A thriller . . . An engaging story of secret deals and embargo-evasion. * Forbes *