Antofagasta share price down by over 5% on Thursday morning
Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) revealed its profits doubled during H1 thanks to the rising price of copper, however the Chilean miner reduced its production guidance.
The FTSE 100 company also said that it plans to raise its interim dividend payment to investors on the back the surging price of copper, which rose by 19% during the first half of the year.
Revenue for the first six months of 2021 was $3.6bn, an increase of 68% compared to the same period a year ago, while the firm’s pre-tax profit rose to $1.8bn.
Shareholders received a generous payout of 23.6 cents per share, which was a rise of 281% compared to the year before.
Anto is the latest miner to reveal healthy results thanks to rising commodity prices as economies around the world have been opened up as coronavirus restrictions have been reduced.
Antofagasta plc CEO Iván Arriagada said: “We have seen strong copper demand and prices at multi-year highs over the first half of this year which has contributed to the robust financial performance of the Group.”
However, there have been adverse conditions for Antofagasta to contend with, which has resulted in its profit guidance being lowered.
“The half year was not without challenges as we continued to manage our operations and projects under Covid-19 conditions, although the resilience and agility of the group has resulted in costs below guidance,” Arriagada added.
The Antofagasta share price is down by 5.07% during the morning session on Thursday.