Glencore Maintains Trading Earnings Guidance, Despite Market Turmoil

By Alistair MacDonald

Glencore PLC said it will stick to its closely watched earnings guidance for its trading operations, saying a "volatile and complex commodity trading environment has provided opportunities."

Glencore, a mining and commodities trading giant, said trading is generating annualized earnings within its $2.2 billion to $3.2 billion long-term guidance range.

The coronavirus pandemic has sent commodity prices sharply lower and closed mines around the world. But costs have also come down, as sharply lower oil prices make fuel cheaper. The current crisis has also boosted the price of gold, which can be a byproduct of the mining of other metals and can help lower overall costs of mining those other metals. Zinc unit costs, for instance, are now 39% lower. Thermal coal costs are $3 a metric ton lower, at $42 a metric ton, Glencore said.

The miner also said it expects a $1 billion to $1.5 billion reduction in capital expenditure this year, compared with original guidance of $5.5 billion.

Write to Alistair MacDonald at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 30, 2020 05:45 ET (09:45 GMT)

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