The financial statements of Japanese Itochu Corporation showed quite a peculiar phenomenon: 1 is stated in both losses and income fields. However, the difference between these ones is almost a billion dollars. One of the largest Japanese general trading companies lost $1 billion in the US shale project. As a result, the company’s management had to get rid of losing assets urgently to prevent further losses. To speed up the process, Itochu sold its stake at US shale oil company Samson Resources for $1. This is confirmed by the official agreement on shares repurchase that can be viewed on the website of the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The regulator had no suspicions about a conspiracy between Itochu Corporation и Samson Resources as the project did turn out to be very unprofitable. The companies agreed that $1 is a complete and final payment for 25% of shares in the US shale oil company. Only few years ago, Itochu announced a purchase of a stake in Samson Resources at 78 billion yens or $1.04 billion according to the exchange rate of that time.
