News in brief

Murphy Oil to sell assets in Malaysia

Murphy Oil Corp. has agreed to sell a 30 percent stake in its Malaysian oil and natural gas assets for $2 billion in cash to PT Pertamina Malaysia Eksplorasi Produksi.

El Dorado-based Murphy Oil, which entered Malaysia in 1999, will remain operator of the developments.

Money from the sale might be used for acquisitions, debt reduction, share buybacks and drilling in the oil-rich Eagle Ford Shale in Texas, Roger Jenkins, chief executive officer of Murphy Oil, said in the statement. The company wants to complement its offshore oil and gas businesses with onshore fields in North America, according to its website.

"The sales price is on the upper end of our expectations," said Roger Read, a Houston-based analyst for Wells Fargo Securities. "A high percentage of these proceeds can be redeployed toward ... other shareholder friendly efforts."

Murphy's assets in Malaysia produced the equivalent of about 86,000 barrels a day, more than 40 percent of the company's net production last year, according to its website.

-- Bloomberg News

Firm completes deal for Whirlpool site

Spartan Logistics' purchase of a Whirlpool Corp. warehouse in Fort Smith closed recently.

The Ohio-based warehouse and distribution supplier said in May that it was in the process of purchasing the 620,000-square-foot building on Jenny Lind Road. It had initially leased about 100,000 square feet of the building. The terms of the deal were not released.

The warehouse is part of a 152-acre complex that includes 2.2 million square feet of buildings, including Whirlpool's vacant plant, which is not part of the deal. Whirlpool closed the plant in June 2012.

In May, Steve Harmon, president of Spartan Logistics, said the facility could employ up to 50 workers, once the operation was up and running and all space leased. According to the company website, the Fort Smith location allows for one-day shipping to most of Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana.

-- John Magsam

Arkansas Index dips 2.09; PAM up 5.07%

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, fell 2.09 to 343.05 Tuesday.

"The major averages closed lower as disappointing economic data and increasing geopolitical unrest continue to weigh heavily on investors," said Bob Williams, senior vice president and managing director of Delta Trust Investments Inc. in Little Rock.

PAM Transportation shares jumped 5.07 percent to $36.25 on Tuesday while Dillard's shares fell 3.14 percent to $108.98. Acxiom dropped 2.68 percent to $16.55.

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.

Business on 10/01/2014

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