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Mining giant Xstrata is moving in on the 50 per cent stake of Sphere Minerals Ltd (ASX:SPH) it needs to secure its takeover bid of the West African focused iron ore company.
Last week Xstrata increased its offer to $3.00 per share, from $2.50 per share it had offered in August.
According to Fairfax media, Xstrata's stake has now jumped to 46.55 per cent, following Genesis Investment Management yesterday announcing it would sell its 7.98 per cent interest.
Xstrata says its offer will close this Friday, by which time the bid will expire if Xstrata has not received the required acceptances.
Sphere Minerals slipped further into the red in fiscal 2010, reporting a loss of $8.69 million in the year to 30 June.
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