Harmony Gold reported an 87% rise in annual profit on Thursday, 27 August, as surging gold prices more than offset the impact of lower production volumes and declining ore grades, enabling the miner to declare a record dividend.
The company, South Africa’s largest gold producer and also active in the copper sector, said adjusted earnings per share reached US$2.73 for the financial year ended 30 June, up from US$1.46 in the prior year, according to a Reuters report.
Harmony Gold announced it will pay an annual dividend of US$0.47 per share, nearly five times the amount distributed in the previous year.
The miner benefited from a 35% increase in the average gold price, which helped cushion the effect of a 3% decline in gold production, which fell to 1.43 million ounces compared with the prior financial year.
Harmony Gold is projecting an even lower gold output in the current financial year, guiding for between 1.3 million and 1.4 million ounces.
Gold prices rose sharply over the period, driven by sustained central bank purchasing and growing investor demand for safe-haven assets amid heightened geopolitical tensions, uncertainty over global economic policy, and concerns over the pace of world economic growth.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/?p=534532
