The World for Sale: Money, Power and the Traders Who Barter the Earth’s Resources
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- Create Date：2022-03-08 00:51:50
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Javier Blas
- ISBN：1847942679
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Summary
'Gripping'
Economist
'Jaw-dropping' Sunday Times
'Riveting' Financial Times
'Fascinating' Reuters
Shortlisted for the Financial Times & McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award
Meet the billionaire traders who supply the world with oil， metal and food。
You've probably never heard of them。
They wield unimaginable political and economic power。
And， like it or not， you're one of their customers。
__
Financial Times and Economist Book of the Year
'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 Carré。 The difference is they're true' Andrew Neil
'Jaw-dropping' Sunday Times
'Riveting' Financial Times
'Fascinating' Reuters
Shortlisted for the Financial Times & McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award
Meet the billionaire traders who supply the world with oil， metal and food。
You've probably never heard of them。
They wield unimaginable political and economic power。
And， like it or not， you're one of their customers。
__
Financial Times and Economist Book of the Year
'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 Carré。 The difference is they're true' Andrew Neil
Reviews
Nathan Aracena
，
4。5 stars。 Couldn’t quite give 5 stars as not up there with Freakonomics or Empire of Pain but very almost there。 Fascinating read， all about commodity traders and their huge influence in the world， financially， politically and economically through the last 100 or so years。 It’s easy to look at this horde of modern day smugglers as common traders， suited and booted at Wall Street， but this is a very different vain of people。 The people who deal in the shadows， making lucrative trades and influen 4。5 stars。 Couldn’t quite give 5 stars as not up there with Freakonomics or Empire of Pain but very almost there。 Fascinating read， all about commodity traders and their huge influence in the world， financially， politically and economically through the last 100 or so years。 It’s easy to look at this horde of modern day smugglers as common traders， suited and booted at Wall Street， but this is a very different vain of people。 The people who deal in the shadows， making lucrative trades and influencing markets， economies and effectively wars。 People who aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty （or bloody） and due to Swiss banks， shell companies， and soft sanctions， have spent years getting away with it。 A history of exploitation， through Latin America’s metals， Africa’s mines， Chinese crops， and so on。 Author also delves into wars and how they’ve also funded more than just commodities。 And finally， so relevant now， a vast amount of the book covers the oligarchs and the readers impact on Russia。 Whilst they clearly haven’t started the current state of affairs， they’ve fed into it and you can see how easily they bypass sanctions to continue to provide a country money， which is demoralising at this time - to know all our sanctions and government backing against Russia - effectively means squat to these guys。 Great book that really pulls back the curtain on this world that so often hides in the shadows， but is as morally and ethically bad as the wankers and bankers who spunk away our pension funds on shorting markets and funding genocides。 。。。more
Enda Hackett
，
An eye opening book。 Makes you think about who truly runs the world。
Eswar
，
Proof of another unregulated， PR shy industry influencing global politics。 good primer on innovative deal structuring。 Reliant on dollars yet funding anti-Western principles。Want to stop Russia's belligerence？ Short Glencore stock till bankruptcy。 Ensure no other lender provides line of credits or financing to unethical commodity traders。 Then beware of #2 Economy's bankrolling。。。 Proof of another unregulated， PR shy industry influencing global politics。 good primer on innovative deal structuring。 Reliant on dollars yet funding anti-Western principles。Want to stop Russia's belligerence？ Short Glencore stock till bankruptcy。 Ensure no other lender provides line of credits or financing to unethical commodity traders。 Then beware of #2 Economy's bankrolling。。。 。。。more
Xyush
，
Would have sufficed as a New Yorker article
Amit Bhasin
，
This one is a must read。 It chronicles the journey of the movers and shakers in commodity trading from WWII to date。 How a motely crew of risk takers and mavericks used every geo-political conflict to their advantage and shaped the world economics and politics along the way。 This book should be a discourse in B-schoolsStrongly Recommended
Sudhagar
，
An eye-opening read and the authors open the curtains on the murky， corrupt but highly rewarding world of commodity traders。 The authors must be thanked for their contribution as this part of the business world had remained hidden thus far。 They have done a great job in researching over many years and this can be seen from the book。The book itself is very well written， very coherent and presented in a way that it is easy to connect the dots and see the big picture。 The authors have covered all k An eye-opening read and the authors open the curtains on the murky， corrupt but highly rewarding world of commodity traders。 The authors must be thanked for their contribution as this part of the business world had remained hidden thus far。 They have done a great job in researching over many years and this can be seen from the book。The book itself is very well written， very coherent and presented in a way that it is easy to connect the dots and see the big picture。 The authors have covered all key players in the industry and lay bare of the massive corruption and profits that are shocking even for someone well versed in the world of global business。 However， there is one area that I wished the authors covered a little more who have come to control the industry these days - the commodity futures traders。 These traders do not handle physical commodities but mainly involve in the speculative commodity trading using derivatives。 The authors did mention this aspect but failed to drill down further inside this secretive group which has been causing the massive increases and swings in the commodity prices。 In the overall this is a superb book that deeply satisfying and educating at the same time。 。。。more
Sourav
，
Did you know there were traders who sent wheat from US to Russia during Cold War？ This book is on story of commodity traders who traded goods globally， particularly oil and metals。 The stories on how these traders supplied goods during political tensions were quite interesting。
Andrew Rozara
，
A deep dive into the relatively unknown world of Commodity Traders - right from their modern roots to some interesting thoughts on where they go from here。 Very well written and easy to read， it's also well balanced - neither demonising nor lionising the key payers and their actions。 A deep dive into the relatively unknown world of Commodity Traders - right from their modern roots to some interesting thoughts on where they go from here。 Very well written and easy to read， it's also well balanced - neither demonising nor lionising the key payers and their actions。 。。。more
Will Y
，
4。25/5。0This book chronicles the ups and downs of multiple commodity trading firms over generations， from the 1930s to the present day。 While some of the traders' behavior were unethical （and some illegal）， Blas demonizes too much traders who profited due to their unique market insight。Above all else， this book reminds me of the scale of market inefficiencies that existed， and continue to exist today， particularly in asset classes even less transparent than commodities （e。g。 crypto）。 4。25/5。0This book chronicles the ups and downs of multiple commodity trading firms over generations， from the 1930s to the present day。 While some of the traders' behavior were unethical （and some illegal）， Blas demonizes too much traders who profited due to their unique market insight。Above all else， this book reminds me of the scale of market inefficiencies that existed， and continue to exist today， particularly in asset classes even less transparent than commodities （e。g。 crypto）。 。。。more
Jack
，
The world for Sale sheds light on the shadowy commodities business， tracking its emergence in the middle of the last century to the present day。 For the commodities traders of the previous seven decades， no deal is too risky， no trade embargo impenetrable， and no dictator or regime too toxic， all laid out in riveting detail。 The spectacular deal-making of the industry's key players provides colour to the various trends and market phases described by Blas and Farchy。 The analysis remains incitefu The world for Sale sheds light on the shadowy commodities business， tracking its emergence in the middle of the last century to the present day。 For the commodities traders of the previous seven decades， no deal is too risky， no trade embargo impenetrable， and no dictator or regime too toxic， all laid out in riveting detail。 The spectacular deal-making of the industry's key players provides colour to the various trends and market phases described by Blas and Farchy。 The analysis remains inciteful without feeling overwrought or prescriptive， a style familiar to the FT， the paper both authors previously worked。However， what stood out more than any one deal， piece of analysis， or revelation， was the ethos and attitude of the industry itself。 Driven and forged by the leading traders of the 70's and 80's， commodities traders mark themselves out as consummate capitalists， totally a-political in their actions， motivated only by profit and prepared to deal with anyone， anyway， so long as they think they can get away with it。 One hopes that the business and the world are ready to leave this attitude in the past。 。。。more
RZ
，
It's an enjoyable and eye-opened read。 The commodity traders， are so important but were rarely in the spotlight before。 This is the meaning for reading - to discover a new world。 It's an enjoyable and eye-opened read。 The commodity traders， are so important but were rarely in the spotlight before。 This is the meaning for reading - to discover a new world。 。。。more
HAMZA IQBAL
，
A very well researched book of a niche genre， which informs you about a section of the world that deeply impacts your life， yet you know little about。 The stories inside are riveting and an enjoyable read。 In a strange manner， you feel enamoured by the operations， farsight and courage of the commodity traders， while also simultaneously feeling anger for them for the damages they inflict in the process on entire countries， when most inhabitants are even unaware of their existence。 You will be lef A very well researched book of a niche genre， which informs you about a section of the world that deeply impacts your life， yet you know little about。 The stories inside are riveting and an enjoyable read。 In a strange manner， you feel enamoured by the operations， farsight and courage of the commodity traders， while also simultaneously feeling anger for them for the damages they inflict in the process on entire countries， when most inhabitants are even unaware of their existence。 You will be left convinced that the world needs to check their acts， while also realising the difficulty that lies in the way。A read recommended for people from all walks of life 。。。more
Ben Rogers
，
This was a pretty upsetting read。 Corruption， bribery， overlooking things， dealing under the table - all just for money - to the detriment of nations， our planet， our lives。 All too common today。 Really quite sad。 I would recommend this book。 4。0/5
Miguel Angel
，
Explica el desarrollo de los mercados de commodities y de sus principales actores asimismo también describe con bastante detalle una serie de casos sobre como se intermedia en estos mercados en situaciones políticamente problemáticas。 No obstante， pese a que el libro es informativo， se hace un poquito pesado al final。
Alexander Han
，
One of the better books that I’ve read in a long time。 Well researched and thoughtful piece that uncovers the industry easily to the layman
Ravi Srikant
，
A good test of the quality of a book is to read it while sitting in a bus or train and seeing if you fall asleep or not。 When this book passed this test， I knew it wouldn't take me a long time to finish reading this book。The book discusses the rise of commodity traders from it's rather humble origins post WW2 as they slowly loosened the grip of the Seven Sisters （major oil companies of that time） on the global oil market。 It highlights the people involved in these companies and their personaliti A good test of the quality of a book is to read it while sitting in a bus or train and seeing if you fall asleep or not。 When this book passed this test， I knew it wouldn't take me a long time to finish reading this book。The book discusses the rise of commodity traders from it's rather humble origins post WW2 as they slowly loosened the grip of the Seven Sisters （major oil companies of that time） on the global oil market。 It highlights the people involved in these companies and their personalities along with their impact on geopolitics。 The book details some of the key traders in each commodity and the kinds of trades they have done from Latin America to Soviet Union/ Russia to Eastern Europe and Africa。 It also highlights some of the unsavoury aspects of the business including bribery， offshore accounts and dealings that were not clean。The only negative I could think of was that the book tries to portray these traders as larger than life characters wielding enormous power which may have been exaggerated but given the overall fast paced nature of the book I would grant the authors this liberty。 。。。more
Des
，
A captivating journey through the opaque， and sometimes dangerous， world of commodity traders。 One of the better business books I’ve read。
John Oswald
，
A gripping， shocking， revealing and uncomfortable read， this one。 You wouldn’t think that a tale of commodity traders would be hugely interesting but you’d be wrong… Blas and Farchy have dedicated decades of their journalistic careers to this， and the level of research and evidence bears it out。 The simple part is that this is a history of how companies like Glencore， Trafigura and others came into being - the huge egos and swashbuckling capitalists that spotted how to make a buck from shifting A gripping， shocking， revealing and uncomfortable read， this one。 You wouldn’t think that a tale of commodity traders would be hugely interesting but you’d be wrong… Blas and Farchy have dedicated decades of their journalistic careers to this， and the level of research and evidence bears it out。 The simple part is that this is a history of how companies like Glencore， Trafigura and others came into being - the huge egos and swashbuckling capitalists that spotted how to make a buck from shifting raw materials around the world。 Along the way it became a veritable money machine， and had the unintended consequence of getting deeply involved in some very morally dubious national political scrapes。 A true thrilling tale of modern capitalism that poses many awkward truths。 I’m reminded of histories of the East India Company - there’s the same underlying theme of well connected， affable and ruthlessly ambitious men striking deals because they can and because why not， and it’s not their problem really if a new regime crumbles or the price gets crazily distorted and leads to wide ranging political consequences。 When Glencore IPOd， many many billionaires were made。 I hope they can sleep at night。 This truly excellent book throws open so many questions about capitalism itself - it deserves a very big audience。 And maybe a Steven Soderbergh film adaptation…。 #guehennoreads #booksofinstagram #booksof2021 @javierblasotin 。。。more
Blago Chanchev
，
I've been quite lucky to start the year with a few really good books and this one is one of them。 The authors， veteran journalists covering the energy sector and commodity trading， depict a picture of an industry with a long history， focusing mainly on the years after WWII to present days， and highlighting the incredibly shadowy corners of the world the commodity traders operate in。 Apolitical people with endless ambition， laser focus and a knack for making deals， ready to take risks no one else I've been quite lucky to start the year with a few really good books and this one is one of them。 The authors， veteran journalists covering the energy sector and commodity trading， depict a picture of an industry with a long history， focusing mainly on the years after WWII to present days， and highlighting the incredibly shadowy corners of the world the commodity traders operate in。 Apolitical people with endless ambition， laser focus and a knack for making deals， ready to take risks no one else wants， turn into major players in global trading and， eventually， in the halls of Washington， London， Brussels， Moscow and Beijing。 All that from their sleepy offices in small-town Switzerland。 But with big bucks and the never-ending desire to grow and expand comes big scrutiny not just from state regulators but from business partners along the chain。 So， the secretive and shadowy traders， want it or not， will have to adapt their approach or risk extinction。 A fascinating read。 Highly recommend！ 。。。more
Matt Gale
，
Loved it！ Read it！ The End
Markus Auer
，
In my first job at a major oil company， I was lucky to sit within earshot of the crude trading operations with their live link to the London traders。 "Call up Vitol， we want that 80kt of Arab Heavy FOB！" It gave me a feeling of closeness to the processes that made our world tick。 Naturally， I was excited to read The World for Sale once I saw it on the Economist's book recommendations。 In general， the book is a balanced account of the major trading houses after WW2。 Sprinkled with some juicy anec In my first job at a major oil company， I was lucky to sit within earshot of the crude trading operations with their live link to the London traders。 "Call up Vitol， we want that 80kt of Arab Heavy FOB！" It gave me a feeling of closeness to the processes that made our world tick。 Naturally， I was excited to read The World for Sale once I saw it on the Economist's book recommendations。 In general， the book is a balanced account of the major trading houses after WW2。 Sprinkled with some juicy anecdotes it sheds light on the major players， traders， and managers defining the global commodity markets。 For me， that was all well。 However， readers without prior knowledge about how resources are actually moved around may feel a bit lost。 It would have certainly helped to sketch out the process of trading end-to-end at least once。 For me personally， the only minor detractor was the writing style that sits somewhere between a slightly cheeky Wikipedia entry and a 300 page WSJ article。 。。。more
Kwuang
，
Main complaint is that it spends too much time in the history of the commodity traders and not enough on the current state of it （only the last chapter touches on the current state）。 So many things have changed that a lot of the problems it uncovers is outdated and so the book fails to be as useful as it could have been :/
Navdeep Pundhir
，
Fantastic book！ After a long time have I come across a more thorough researched and well written narrative of a tale， truly global in perspective。
Heiki
，
I started this book just out of pure interest towards commodities trading and got a very entertaining and good overview of the whole industry。 I was quite fascinated listening to the audio book and surprised that a book on such a topic kept me so captivated for hours。 Definitely encouraged more audio-book walks than I normally do。
jt
，
It's so much about telling old tales about how powerful （and dangerous） certain trading company partners are， much less than a how-to guide I'd prefer。。。 It's so much about telling old tales about how powerful （and dangerous） certain trading company partners are， much less than a how-to guide I'd prefer。。。 。。。more
Lucas Leite
，
The World for sale is a very interesting read。 In general， the book presents the main traders （commodities companies） and their fundamental roles in the main world economic events after World War II。 The reading brings us， therefore， surprises （another point of view） when going into details in historical periods such as the two oil crises， fall of the soviet union， aphartaid south africa， rise of china etc。。。
Reed Hansen
，
It's more than a little terrifying that the fate of individual developing nations is in the hands of so few。 Also that these firms operate in such obscurity and with such cold amorality。 This book includes a ton of anecdotes of how the rich trading firms leverage their access to resources to extract other rare resources from less powerful nations。 I enjoyed it but was also really shaken by this world of commodity trading that I was completely unfamiliar with。 It's more than a little terrifying that the fate of individual developing nations is in the hands of so few。 Also that these firms operate in such obscurity and with such cold amorality。 This book includes a ton of anecdotes of how the rich trading firms leverage their access to resources to extract other rare resources from less powerful nations。 I enjoyed it but was also really shaken by this world of commodity trading that I was completely unfamiliar with。 。。。more
Ayman
，
The world for sale by Javier Blas and Jack FarchyOne of five books shortlisted for FT and McK business book of the year。 It’s a history book of a very secretive yet very powerful industry controlled by a handful of billionaires – commodity trading。Commodity trading companies became a big force during the global wave of national librations in the fifties and sixties。 They helped young countries shake off the controlling grip of Western commodity tycoons by selling their resources from crude oil t The world for sale by Javier Blas and Jack FarchyOne of five books shortlisted for FT and McK business book of the year。 It’s a history book of a very secretive yet very powerful industry controlled by a handful of billionaires – commodity trading。Commodity trading companies became a big force during the global wave of national librations in the fifties and sixties。 They helped young countries shake off the controlling grip of Western commodity tycoons by selling their resources from crude oil to sugar to their own customers。Although this may be a good thing， many such deals were done with kleptocratic regimes in a way that kept most of the profits away from poor populations， some of them are among the poorest on the planet， e。g。， Chad， Kongo and Jamaica and sometimes even despite Western economic sanctions on such regimes， e。g。， Saddam Hussein’s and Vladimir Putin’s Dealing in such dark parts of the world such as Apartheid South Africa， war-torn Iraq and Africa is not for everyone。 Conservative major companies steered away from such high risks， while commodity traders made their fortunes with impunity。The book concludes that the world is turning against commodity traders due to several trends:1-tStronger and tighter global cooperation against corruption2-tStronger enforcement of economic sanctions against corrupt regimes3-tDemocratization of knowledge and access to information reduced the intelligence edge traders had versus everyone else。However， China is emerging to take over this shadowy world， operating a very large economic power outside the Western regulatory dome， with increasing influence in Africa and tighter relations with Russia and a sympathetic view on dictatorships。A great book！ 。。。more
Connor McGauley
，
Probably the best book I’ve read in a long time。 Well written， engaging， some serious world politics。 Basically a corporate spy novel IRL
Andrew Tollemache
，