Anglo American: Metal Profits Slump, but Diamonds Buck Trend
July 30, 22
(IDEX Online) - Anglo American, parent company of De Beers, announced a slump in revenue and profits for the first half of 2022, as it struggled with Covid-related absenteeism, disrupted supply chains, weather extremes and economic volatility.
The British diversified miner saw pre-tax profits fall by 33 per cent to $6.80bn and revenue down 17 per cent to $18.11bn.
It faced "considerable challenges" across most of its operations, including copper, platinum, nickel and iron ore.
But diamonds fared better. "De Beers' rough diamond production increased by 10 per cent to 16.9 million carats (30 June 2021: 15.4 million carats)," it said, "reflecting a strong operational performance and higher planned levels of production to meet continued strong demand for rough diamonds, while the first quarter of 2021 was affected by particularly high rainfall in southern Africa."
Last week De Beers announced it had its production guidance slightly for 2022 - from 30-33Mct to 32-34Mct - citing "robust demand and strong year-to-date operational performance".