CNOOC tries to ally Congress' fears

CNOOC chairman and CEO Fu Chengyu, in a letter to the US Congress, sought to defuse opposition and fears that its bid to buy California's Unocal would undermine US national security and open the floodgates to a torrent of Chinese takeovers, the Financial Times reported. Citing a copy of the letter, the paper reported that CNOOC is committed to its "friendly and open offer for Unocal". The letter also said since 70% of Unocal's oil and gas reserves are close to Asian markets where CNOOC operates, the acquisition would be a good fit.