As expected, global miner and South African corporate icon Anglo American reported a decline in profits in its interim results on Thursday, 30 July 2020. Still, the company is paying dividends and its Kumba Iron Ore unit last week announced a R7-billion mine expansion project in the Northern Cape. The Covid-19 pandemic has hit its bottom line, but the company is weathering the storm.
Anglo, which has its primary listing in London, posted underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of $3.4-billion in the six months to the end of June 2020, a 39% decline compared to the same period in 2019. But Reuters reported that this beat a consensus forecast of $3-billion. Its dividend per share dropped 55% to 28 US cents but, in these tough times, a dividend is a dividend.
Closer to home, petrochemicals giant Sasol, which has been reeling from the price shock with large-scale job losses potentially looming, grasped a lifeline this week. The company said on 29 July 2020 that it would sell 16 air separation units in Secunda – the world’s largest oxygen production site – to France’s Air Liquide for R8.5-billion. Sasol has announced asset sales of up to $2-billion and this one gets the company 25% of the way to that target.