Rosneft says deal to buy trading from Morgan Stanley intact

[April 30, 2014]  MOSCOW (Reuters) — Russia's top crude oil producer Rosneft <ROSN.MM> said on Tuesday it aimed to complete deal to buy the majority of global physical oil trading operations from Morgan Stanley in the second half of 2014, as expected.

Some industry watchers have expressed doubts the deal will go ahead due to Western sanctions on Russian officials, including Rosneft's head Igor Sechin, over the Ukraine crisis.

Rosneft said in emailed comments that the deal with Morgan Stanley was going to plan.

"The implementation of the deal is going according to the agreed schedule between the companies, including in terms of filing the documentation to the regulatory bodies," Rosneft said.

Morgan Stanley sold the majority of its global physical oil trading operations to Rosneft in December, becoming the latest Wall Street firm to dispose of a major part of its commodity business. The parties did not disclose the price.

Morgan Stanley planned to submit the sale for review by the U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS), an inter-agency executive branch panel that examines foreign investment for potential threats to national security, a source familiar with the matter said last December.

It was not clear whether the submission have been made.

The sale is subject to regulatory approvals in the United States, the European Union and certain other jurisdictions.

(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; editing by Nigel Stephenson)

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