Anglo American Platinum Says 1st Half Earnings Hit by South African Strike

By Alex MacDonald

LONDON--South Africa's Anglo American Platinum Ltd. (AMS.JO) warned Monday that it expects to report a significant drop in earnings for the first half of the year, primarily due to a five-month strike by platinum workers.

Anglo Platinum, the world's largest platinum producer, said in a trading statement that headline earnings per share are forecast to drop to between 0.20 rand and 0.80 rand (1.9 U.S. cents to 7.48 U.S. cents) a share for the first six months of the year, compared with ZAR5.14 in the same period a year earlier.

Basic earnings per share for the first half of the year are forecast to drop to between ZAR1.30 and ZAR1.80 from 468 cents in the year-earlier period. The figure includes a gain of ZAR243 million, equivalent to ZAR0.93 cents a share, arising from the final phase of the refinancing transaction with Atlatsa Resources Corporation.

Anglo Platinum, which is majority owned by Anglo American PLC (AAL.LN), agreed on June 24 along with other platinum miners to a wage settlement with South Africa's main platinum-mining union, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, that ended the country's longest strike ever.

Mining analysts said on the day of the wage settlement that it would take at least three months to get production back to the prestrike levels. The world's three-biggest platinum producers--Anglo American Platinum, Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. (IMP.JO) and Lonmin PLC (LMI.LN)--said they had each shed around a third of their annual production.

The company is due to release its first-half results on July 21.

--Devon Maylie in Johannesburg contributed to this story.

Write to Alex MacDonald at [e-mail]

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