Feb 28 (Reuters) - Occidental Petroleum Corp OXY.N Chief
Executive Vicki Hollub said on Friday that the company is ready
to reduce spending this year if oil markets continue to be
roiled by global coronavirus fears.
"As global commodity prices have declined sharply in recent
days, we are prepared to reduce our spending if the current
environment does not improve," Hollub said on a call with
analysts. "We are monitoring the situation closely and retain
the flexibility to adjust our budget if needed."
Occidental plans spending of $5.2 billion to $5.4 billion,
well below the $6.36 billion it spent last year.
It reported a quarterly loss on a more than $1.7 billion in
impairment and other charges on Thursday.
It has been aggressively cutting costs by laying off staff
and selling assets to pay down its $38.54 billion debt pile
following its $38 billion acquisition of Anadarko Petroleum.
Shares were down 4.5% on Friday morning to $30.69.