NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / April 12, 2023 / American Airlines:

In 1972, Bonnie Tiburzi wrote to every major airline carrier in the United States asking for a job, and every single airline turned her down, except for one. In March of 1973, American Airlines offered Bonnie a position as First Officer – making her the first woman to fly for a major commercial airline at the early age of 24.

Bonnie bravely broke barriers in the male-dominated profession and paved the path for women aviators to follow. As we celebrate 50 years since she started flying for American, we honor the women that inspired her and those she has inspired to take the controls on the flight deck.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from American Airlines on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: American AirlinesWebsite: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/american-airlinesEmail: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: American Airlines

View source version on accesswire.com: https://www.accesswire.com/748820/50-Years-Later-A-Trailblazer-Paved-the-Path-for-Women-on-the-Flight-Deck

In the US, Wall Street pushed higher on Wednesday after key inflation data showed a smaller-than expected rise in prices for March.

The Dow Jones (^DJI) rose 0.10% to 33,718.31 points, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) climbed 0.57% to 4,132.50 points. The tech-heavy NASDAQ (^IXIC) also gained – by 0.82% to 12,130.15.

FTSE 100 and European markets

Across the pond, European markets and the FTSE 100 edged mostly higher as investors also turned their attention to the latest inflation data.

The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) rose 0.38% to close at 7,814, while the CAC 40 (^FCHI) in Paris finished flat at 7,387 – and in Germany, the DAX (^GDAXI) gained 0.20% to 15,686.

Stocks at the top

The top FTSE 100 risers were Frasers Group (FRAS.L), up 1.66%; Unite Group (UTG.L), up 1.24%; Weir Group (WEIR.L), up 1.21% – and Burberry (BRBY.L), up 1.21%.

In contrast, Anglo American (AAL.L) and Ocado Group (OCDO.L) were at the bottom of the basket with their shares down 1.16% and 1.15% respectively.

Asia financial markets

In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 (^N225) rose 0.68% to 28,113 points, while the Hang Seng (^HSI) in Hong Kong fell 0.58% to 20,366. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) gained 0.24% to 3,321.67 points.

Economic data

In the US, new data showed that inflation cooled in March as the Federal Reserve’s interest rate increases showed more impact, the Labor Department reported on Wednesday.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI), a measure of the costs for goods and services, rose 0.1% for the month.The general expectation was that the CPI would have increased by 0.2% in March, as compared to a gain of 0.4% in February.

Excluding food and energy, core CPI increased 0.4%, meeting the median estimate of 0.4%.

Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank Research said in a note to clients on Wednesday that the prospect of another Fed hike was given some support by various Federal Open Market Committee speakers yesterday.

“Early in the session, New York Fed President Williams said that the Fed’s median forecast for a further rate hike was a “reasonable starting place”. And later in the session, Philadelphia Fed president Harker said that he wanted to “get rates above 5 and then sit there for a while”, which would imply at least one more 25bp move.

However, Chicago Fed president Goolsbee struck a notably more dovish tone relative to some recent speakers, saying that the Fed should “be careful about raising rates too aggressively until we see how much work the headwinds are doing for us in getting down inflation.”

Read more: Trending tickers – De La Rue | SSE | Ocado | Centrica

Bank earnings

It’s also a big earnings week for banks, including JPMorgan (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC), and Citi (C) – with all three due to report their first-quarter results on Friday.

The three banks were part of a consortium last month that injected some $30bn in deposits into First Republic to shore up the struggling lender.

Tina Teng, market analyst at CMC Markets, said: “Higher interest income is expected for the banks specialising in lending, such as JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo. However, the outlook may stay gloomy due to the bank crisis in early March. The risks will be upon reduction in deposits, increase in loan loss provisions, and decline in the capital markets.”

Read more: Bank stocks to watch ahead of earnings reports

Oil prices

Meanwhile, US crude oil, or West Texas Intermediate (CL=F), gained 0.12% to $81.63 a barrel, while Brent crude (BZ=F) also went up – by 0.15% to $85.74 a barrel.

British pound

In currency news, the British pound fell slightly against the US dollar (GBPUSD=X) – down 0.01% to 1.24, meaning £1 will get you $1.24. Against the Euro, the British pound (GBPEUR=X) also fell – by 0.04% to 1.13.

De La Rue shares

Meanwhile, De La Rue (DLAR) shares plunged on Wednesday by over 30%, bringing its one-year loss to around 68% and its 5-year share price decline to more than 92%.

It comes after the company issued a profit warning with full-year earnings for fiscal 2023 expected to fall short of market estimates.

Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor, said: “2023 adjusted operating profit is now seen coming in at a mid-single digit percentage and for fiscal 2024 De La Rue forecasts a figure in the low £20m range.

“The British currency and passport maker has been suffering from weak demand for banknotes which is languishing at a 20-year low. Activist investor Crystal Amber Funds recently said the group’s turnaround plan announced three years ago is failing ‘by every measure’ and the company is ‘failing to control’ various fees paid out. The activist has also been trying to remove Kev Loosemore as Chairman but he survived a vote in December.”

Scholar also highlighted how, in recent years, De La Rue has struggled with the major loss of its British passport contract after Brexit, increased costs, supply chain woes, and a structural decline in demand for physical cash amid the rise of contactless payments and digital banking.

LVMH results

Investors will also be monitoring Luxury goods company LVMH (MC.PA). Europe’s most valuable company, which is home to brands such as Tiffany & Co, Christian Dior, Fendi, Givenchy, Marc Jacobs, Stella McCartney, Sephora and Bulgari, is due to report its first-quarter sales after markets close.

Rightmove UK home sales

In other news, Rightmove (RMV.L) said the number of agreed home sales in March was just 1% below pre-pandemic levels from March 2019 but is down 18% year-on-year. A pickup in buyer demand resulted in a 10% increase in agreed sales from 2019 versus an 11% drop at the start of the year.

Victoria Scholar commented: “The market has been recovering since the turmoil around the mini-budget last year which sent mortgage rates temporarily sharply higher. Reduced asking prices have helped to generate a pickup in sales, with particular strength in the British capital thanks to strong demand from workers and overseas buyers for London apartments.

“With the housing market likely to cool further this year, and the Bank of England nearing the peak of the rate hiking cycle, we could see more buyers return to the market, as the recent headwinds which have stymied transactional activity subside.”

Watch: Tips to tackle grocery and gas prices amid inflation

Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android.

(Bloomberg) — A major coal port in Australia said vessels bound for China had arrived at the facility this month, adding more evidence of an easing of curbs on sales to the top consuming nation.

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“There are early signs that the informal ban on Australian coal imports to China may be in the process of being removed,” Dalrymple Bay Infrastructure Ltd., which operates the world’s largest metallurgical coal export facility in Queensland, said Monday in a statement.

Coal suppliers including BHP Group Ltd. have resumed exports to China after authorities gave clearance for some purchases to restart after an easing of diplomatic tensions between the two nations. Imports by China, previously a key customer, halted in late 2020 as an informal ban was imposed following disagreements on issues including the origins of coronavirus.

China could import as much as 20 million tons of hard coking coal from Australia this year, producer Coronado Global Resources Inc. said last month.

Dalrymple Bay shipped 53.3 million tons in 2022, with Japan, South Korea, India and Europe accounting for 75% of exports, the company said in its statement.

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(Bloomberg) — A decade ago, a UK startup’s plan to build a $4 billion mine more than a mile under the North Sea caught the nation’s imagination. It became a retail shareholder sensation and promised riches for many landowners. But when the company failed to raise the last piece of financing, it all came crashing down.

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For the last three years, the giant fertilizer project — which would be the UK’s biggest mine in more than four decades — has largely sat on ice, drifting from the public consciousness as its new owner Anglo American Plc figured out what to do with it.

Today it provided the answer. After taking a $1.7 billion writedown on the mine, Anglo unveiled its plans to spend almost $5 billion to bring the project into production by 2027, a decision that will likely secure thousands of jobs in one of the country’s poorest regions and become a major engine of growth for the company.

One of the world’s top mining companies, Anglo was attracted by the huge size of the deposit combined with the longer-term prospects for fertilizer demand. About 1.8 billion tons of a fertilizer called polyhalite are sitting more than 1.5 kilometers below the surface, and stretching out under the sea, which could be mined for more than 40 years. Demand for crop nutrients is expected to keep growing as a rising global population boosts food consumption.

“This resource is so unique, it’s one of a kind in terms of its size and shape,” Anglo Chief Executive Officer Duncan Wanblad said in a Bloomberg TV interview on Thursday. “We will be able to bring some very, very profitable fertilizer on to the market.”

Retail Interest

Sirius Minerals Plc, the mine’s previous owner, became a retail investor darling when it started fundraising for the project. Across the UK, regular people poured money into the company while the planned mine gained an almost cult-like following in North Yorkshire — in addition to buying shares, many locals saw the prospect of life-changing royalties on the mineral rights that fell on their land. Others simply hoped for jobs.

The overwhelming support helped Sirius win a license to build the project despite being in a National Park and overlooking the seaside town of Whitby, the setting for part of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula.”

But then Sirius ran out of money, and Anglo eventually stepped in with an offer.

While investors lost out — the takeover price was well below the heights at which many had bought their shares — Anglo’s decision to press ahead will be a major boon for the region and the wider UK. The project will likely employ more than 1,000 people once in full production and become a major exporter.

A $4 Billion Mine Was Meant to Lift Northern England. Instead Locals Lost Big

The investment in the Woodsmith project also forms part of a wider shift at the world’s biggest miners, as they retreat from fossil fuels and seek growth in commodities like fertilizers and metals that are needed for the green-energy transition.

Writedown

Anglo has written down the value of the project to reflect a change in the way it will be developed, compared with Sirius’s plans.

When Anglo bought Sirius in a half a billion dollar deal it was always likely the project would be delayed and changed. The smaller firm had been rushing to get into production as fast as possible, and Anglo has spent the last three years looking at ways to develop the project more strategically.

The result is that Anglo will now look to start production in 2027 after spending about $1 billion a year on top of the $2.6 billion it has already spent. That will allow it to target annual production of 5 million tons of fertilizer a year, with the capacity already built into crucial infrastructure such as the shafts, and to ultimately expand it to 13 million tons a year.

Polyhalite, or Poly4, is a type of potash found under the North Sea. It’s a relatively unknown type of fertilizer, so Anglo faces the additional challenge of proving how big the market will ultimately be.

Anglo’s plans also come at a time of massive volatility in global fertilizer markets. Prices spiked last year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threw the world’s crop-nutrient sector into disarray. While prices have since eased, the long-term outlook remains strong as the global population and its demand for food grows.

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Mining group extends cost and timeframe estimates for bringing Woodsmith project into production by 2027

By Sameer Manekar and Melanie Burton

(Reuters) -Global miner BHP Group was positive about demand outlook through to fiscal 2024 as top metals consumer China reopens and shifts policy towards its debt-laden property sector, the company said on Tuesday after its 2023 first-half profit missed estimates.

However, its interim dividend of 90 cents per share, while lower than last year's $1.50 per share, beat Vuma Financial's estimate of 88 cents.

"We are positive about the demand outlook in the second half of fiscal 2023 and into fiscal 2024, with strengthening activity in China on the back of recent policy decisions the major driver," Chief Executive Officer Mike Henry said.

"We expect domestic demand in China and India to provide stabilising counterweights to the ongoing slowdown in global trade and in the economies of the U.S., Japan and Europe," he said in a statement.

Last year, miners wrestled with surging costs, a tight domestic labour market and lower iron ore prices due to China's strict zero-COVID policy. But the reopening of the world's second-biggest economy and a property sector policy shift has BHP upbeat on the commodity demand outlook.

"The long-term outlook for our commodities remains strong given population growth, rising living standards and the metals intensity of the energy transition, including for steelmaking raw materials," Henry added, apparently referring to metals demand for products like electric vehicles and windmills.

However, in an environment where central banks are aggressively tightening their monetary policy, BHP expects its operating environment to remain volatile in the near term, but expects China to be a source of stability for commodity demand.

For six months ended Dec. 31, the world's largest listed miner said underlying profit attributable to continuing operations was $6.6 billion, compared with $9.72 billion a year earlier. That missed a Vuma Financial estimate of $6.82 billion.

"There was nothing in that we didn’t expect to see," said analyst David Lennox of Fat Prophets in Sydney, adding shareholders would find comfort in a slightly better-than-expected dividend payout.

"We have got BHP as a hold primarily because their share price is sitting up at record highs and they are going to have to do pretty well to justify those levels."

The Melbourne-based miner also warned it now expects the marginal cost of mining production to be markedly higher than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

BHP, along with joint venture partner Mitsubishi Development, has started pursuing options to divest Daunia and Blackwater coal mines, two of nine metallurgical coal mines in Queensland's Bowen Basin.

(Reporting by Sameer Manekar and Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru, and Melanie Burton in Melbourne; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Josie Kao)

*

H1 profit misses estimate

*

Interim dividend beats estimate

*

Positive on demand outlook from China

*

Starts process to sell two Queensland met coal mines

(Updates with cost of mining production, sale process of two coal mines, analyst comment)

By Sameer Manekar and Melanie Burton

Feb 21 (Reuters) – Global miner BHP Group was positive about demand outlook through to fiscal 2024 as top metals consumer China reopens and shifts policy towards its debt-laden property sector, the company said on Tuesday after its 2023 first-half profit missed estimates.

However, its interim dividend of 90 cents per share, while lower than last year's $1.50 per share, beat Vuma Financial's estimate of 88 cents.

"We are positive about the demand outlook in the second half of fiscal 2023 and into fiscal 2024, with strengthening activity in China on the back of recent policy decisions the major driver," Chief Executive Officer Mike Henry said.

"We expect domestic demand in China and India to provide stabilising counterweights to the ongoing slowdown in global trade and in the economies of the U.S., Japan and Europe," he said in a statement.

Last year, miners wrestled with surging costs, a tight domestic labour market and lower iron ore prices due to China's strict zero-COVID policy. But the reopening of the world's second-biggest economy and a property sector policy shift has BHP upbeat on the commodity demand outlook.

"The long-term outlook for our commodities remains strong given population growth, rising living standards and the metals intensity of the energy transition, including for steelmaking raw materials," Henry added, apparently referring to metals demand for products like electric vehicles and windmills.

However, in an environment where central banks are aggressively tightening their monetary policy, BHP expects its operating environment to remain volatile in the near term, but expects China to be a source of stability for commodity demand.

For six months ended Dec. 31, the world's largest listed miner said underlying profit attributable to continuing operations was $6.6 billion, compared with $9.72 billion a year earlier. That missed a Vuma Financial estimate of $6.82 billion.

"There was nothing in that we didn’t expect to see," said analyst David Lennox of Fat Prophets in Sydney, adding shareholders would find comfort in a slightly better-than-expected dividend payout.

"We have got BHP as a hold primarily because their share price is sitting up at record highs and they are going to have to do pretty well to justify those levels."

The Melbourne-based miner also warned it now expects the marginal cost of mining production to be markedly higher than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

BHP, along with joint venture partner Mitsubishi Development, has started pursuing options to divest Daunia and Blackwater coal mines, two of nine metallurgical coal mines in Queensland's Bowen Basin. (Reporting by Sameer Manekar and Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru, and Melanie Burton in Melbourne; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Josie Kao)

By Himanshi Akhand and Melanie Burton

BENGALURU/MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Australia's iron ore giants BHP Group, Rio Tinto and Fortescue are set to report a steep drop in their earnings, which is set to compress their payouts to shareholders, after China's COVID lockdown drove down iron ore prices.

Earnings at Rio Tinto and BHP Group are seen declining 48% and 28%, respectively, for the six months to December 2022, while Fortescue's half-year earnings are set to slide about 16%, based on estimates from Visible Alpha and Vuma Financial.

The miners are expected to offer a mixed outlook for 2023, amid uncertainty over the strength of China's recovery following the lifting of its strict COVID-19 curbs.

"We haven't seen too much hard data from China just yet, but I think there's enough for the miners to be more optimistic – cautiously so," said Adrian Prendergast, an analyst at Morgans Financial in Melbourne.

The companies are also facing higher materials and fuel costs and a dearth of skilled workers that could impinge on their expansion projects.

Average realised prices for iron ore fell sharply in the six months to December, hitting earnings.

Dividend payouts are expected to fall, undermined by the weaker earnings and a push by the major diversified miners to fund growth, be it through building their own projects or through acquisitions, analysts at Goldman Sachs wrote in a note.

Buyout activity has been ramping up in the mining sector, as evidenced by Rio's recent $3.3 billion takeover of Canada's Turquoise Hill to gain control of its Mongolian copper mine, and BHP's A$9.6 billion offer for copper and gold producer OZ Minerals.

BHP, which will report its first-half results on Feb. 21, is expected to record attributable profit from total operations of $6.82 billion, down from $9.44 billion.

First-half net profit at Fortescue, reporting on Feb. 15, is seen declining to $2.34 billion from $2.78 billion. BHP and Fortescue report on a July-June financial year.

Underlying half-year profit at Rio Tinto, which reports on a calendar year cycle, is seen declining 48% to $4.77 billion from $9.21 billion. Rio will report on Feb. 22.

(Reporting by Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru and Melanie Burton in Melbourne; Editing by Sonali Paul)

MELBOURNE, Jan 31 (Reuters) – New South Wales is set to finalise an order by mid-February that will require all mining firms in Australia's biggest coal exporting state to reserve as much as 10% of their output for domestic supply.

A Department of Planning and Environment spokesperson said the government would issue final directions after talks with miners.

"The draft revised directions allow suppliers the option to provide coal from their own production or to strike an agreement from another supplier to meet their obligations under the directions," the spokesperson said.

The updated plan, disclosed last week, is designed to keep a lid on coal prices and drive down household power bills. The state last week had planned to issue the expanded order by the end of January, but has faced resistance from miners.

The department did not say how many tonnes of coal will be required.

Whitehaven Coal Chief Executive Paul Flynn has said the government appeared to be looking to secure around 3 million to 5 million tonnes, but the company was pressing the state to explain how that shortfall estimate had been determined.

Directions issued in December required a dozen coal mines that supply power plants in New South Wales to fill a shortfall in supply at a capped price of A$125 a tonne – well below the export price currently at about $265 a tonne – under a deal with the federal government.

The mines are mainly owned by Glencore Plc, Peabody Energy, New Hope Corp and Thailand's Banpu PCL .

The state now wants to spread the requirement to all the state's coal producers, including those that export all of their output, including BHP Group, Whitehaven Coal and Yancoal Australia.

BHP has said the new policy could affect its plan to keep its Mt Arthur coal mine, the state's largest single coal mine, open until 2030. (Reporting by Sonali Paul; Additional reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)

Most readers would already be aware that Anglo American’s (LON:AAL) stock increased significantly by 19% over the past three months. Given that the market rewards strong financials in the long-term, we wonder if that is the case in this instance. In this article, we decided to focus on Anglo American’s ROE.

Return on equity or ROE is an important factor to be considered by a shareholder because it tells them how effectively their capital is being reinvested. In short, ROE shows the profit each dollar generates with respect to its shareholder investments.

See our latest analysis for Anglo American

How To Calculate Return On Equity?

ROE can be calculated by using the formula:

Return on Equity = Net Profit (from continuing operations) ÷ Shareholders’ Equity

So, based on the above formula, the ROE for Anglo American is:

26% = US$9.3b ÷ US$36b (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2022).

The ‘return’ is the yearly profit. Another way to think of that is that for every £1 worth of equity, the company was able to earn £0.26 in profit.

Why Is ROE Important For Earnings Growth?

Thus far, we have learned that ROE measures how efficiently a company is generating its profits. Based on how much of its profits the company chooses to reinvest or “retain”, we are then able to evaluate a company’s future ability to generate profits. Assuming everything else remains unchanged, the higher the ROE and profit retention, the higher the growth rate of a company compared to companies that don’t necessarily bear these characteristics.

Anglo American’s Earnings Growth And 26% ROE

To begin with, Anglo American has a pretty high ROE which is interesting. Additionally, the company’s ROE is higher compared to the industry average of 13% which is quite remarkable. This probably laid the groundwork for Anglo American’s moderate 19% net income growth seen over the past five years.

We then performed a comparison between Anglo American’s net income growth with the industry, which revealed that the company’s growth is similar to the average industry growth of 18% in the same period.

past-earnings-growth

Earnings growth is a huge factor in stock valuation. It’s important for an investor to know whether the market has priced in the company’s expected earnings growth (or decline). Doing so will help them establish if the stock’s future looks promising or ominous. One good indicator of expected earnings growth is the P/E ratio which determines the price the market is willing to pay for a stock based on its earnings prospects. So, you may want to check if Anglo American is trading on a high P/E or a low P/E, relative to its industry.

Is Anglo American Using Its Retained Earnings Effectively?

With a three-year median payout ratio of 42% (implying that the company retains 58% of its profits), it seems that Anglo American is reinvesting efficiently in a way that it sees respectable amount growth in its earnings and pays a dividend that’s well covered.

Additionally, Anglo American has paid dividends over a period of at least ten years which means that the company is pretty serious about sharing its profits with shareholders. Our latest analyst data shows that the future payout ratio of the company over the next three years is expected to be approximately 47%. However, Anglo American’s future ROE is expected to decline to 12% despite there being not much change anticipated in the company’s payout ratio.

Summary

Overall, we are quite pleased with Anglo American’s performance. Particularly, we like that the company is reinvesting heavily into its business, and at a high rate of return. Unsurprisingly, this has led to an impressive earnings growth. Having said that, on studying current analyst estimates, we were concerned to see that while the company has grown its earnings in the past, analysts expect its earnings to shrink in the future. Are these analysts expectations based on the broad expectations for the industry, or on the company’s fundamentals? Click here to be taken to our analyst’s forecasts page for the company.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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(Refiles to add Codelco to the headline)

SANTIAGO, Dec 28 (Reuters) – Anglo American PLC and Chile's Codelco said on Wednesday they are evaluating alternative copper shipment plans after a fire forced a major port in central Chile to close last week.

The fire in the Ventanas port, about 115 kilometers (71.5 miles) northwest of Santiago, left a huge cloud of smoke in the area, but did not spread to nearby facilities, including AES, an electricity company, or Codelco, the world's largest copper producer.

In a statement to Reuters, Anglo American said the fire did not affect its warehouses or infrastructure but that "authorities have completely closed the port" while the incident is investigated.

"The company is evaluating courses of action and at the same time contacting its clients to keep them informed of the status of the situation," the statement said.

The company did not specify the copper volumes that could be affected. Chile is the world's top copper producer.

Codelco said its operations had not been impacted by the fire, but added that "the company is in advanced talks with ports in the Valparaiso region and other nearby areas to continue its shipments and thus fulfill its commercial commitments." (Reporting by Fabian Andrés Cambero; Editing by Barbara Lewis and Matthew Lewis)

(Bloomberg) — China is about to upend the $160 billion iron ore trade with the biggest change in years as Beijing expands efforts to increase control over the natural resources needed to feed its economy.

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A new state-owned company called China Mineral Resources Group is poised to become the world’s biggest iron ore buyer as soon as next year, when it will begin consolidating purchases on behalf of about 20 of the largest Chinese steelmakers including leader China Baowu Steel Group Corp., according to people familiar with the situation.

CMRG has already begun discussing supply contracts with top producers Rio Tinto Group, Vale SA and BHP Group, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private information.

The move to consolidate buying for China’s massive steel industry will give CMRG unprecedented negotiating power in iron ore, and the new company plans to seek discounts to prevailing market prices. It’s the latest in a number of attempts by China, the No. 1 buyer of almost every major commodity, to increase its influence over global markets and pricing.

Representatives from the major iron ore miners were informed of the changes by Chinese officials in recent meetings. The current structure for “term” supply contracts — in which steelmakers place orders on a quarterly basis and use a spot index for pricing — is expected to continue, with CMRG taking over responsibility for certain contracts to begin with, said the people.

Iron ore futures slumped as much as 3.9% in Singapore on Friday, the biggest drop this month.

Multiple attempts to seek comment from CMRG were unsuccessful. Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., the listed unit of Baowu, did not respond to an emailed query. BHP and Rio declined to comment. Vale has been working closely with CMRG and sees an opportunity to strengthen its relationship with China in this new context, the company wrote in an emailed response. “We see ourselves as China’s long-term partner and a reliable supplier to the Chinese steel industry of the future.”

China, which accounts for about three-quarters of the world’s iron ore imports, has long complained the mega miners hold too much power because supply is so concentrated — the top three producers control more than half of global exports.

CMRG was established in July to buy raw materials for the giant domestic steel industry, but it has been unclear how quickly it would begin operating, or how much of the industry’s purchasing would end up being centralized.

If implemented, the move to buy through CMRG will be the biggest change to the iron ore market since 2010, when producers led by BHP took advantage of a scramble for supplies to break a 40-year system of selling iron ore at a set annual price, arguing that prices should be driven by market fundamentals.

Now, the power balance has switched. Demand is stagnating, weakening the miners’ position, and the world’s biggest steelmaker is flexing its muscles. Chinese iron ore demand has fallen from a peak in 2020, and Macquarie Group Ltd. forecasts it will not return to that level within the next five years.

Read: China Wants to Rewire Its Billion-Ton Iron Ore Trade: QuickTake

The recent discussions have spooked senior executives at the biggest miners, who are worried about the potential for China to increase its control over prices in their most profitable commodity.

China’s current plan is to move all term supply contracts for the leading steelmakers over time to CMRG, the people said, although the negotiations are still ongoing and the situation could change. The company will act as an agent for the steelmakers and has hired leaders and key traders from Chinese metals firms.

“The miners don’t have a choice – they have to sign up to this China-based price-setting agency, because there’s no one else out there to buy these tons,” said Tom Price, head of commodities strategy at Liberum Capital. Over time the move could push the big miners to work more closely, given that supply is so concentrated among a few producers, he said.

“Given this market’s structure, if China decides to dictate pricing terms then we should expect the miners to respond by behaving less competitively, and more strategically.”

Tensions between the top iron ore producers and their biggest buyer are nothing new.

For most of the industry’s recent history, iron ore was sold based on the annual “benchmark” price, set through lengthy negotiations between the Australian miners and Japan’s Nippon Steel Corp. and China’s Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., which the rest of the industry would use as a reference.

In 2010, under pugnacious Chief Executive Officer Marius Kloppers, BHP decided to break the system. Negotiations had become increasingly difficult and ugly, and the biggest miner was convinced it was leaving too much money on the table.

Read: Rio, BHP Vow to Cooperate With China’s Iron Ore Firm

With Chinese demand roaring and supply at the time increasingly tight, the miners were able to move pricing onto a spot market, where prices jumped from about $60 a ton to $150 a ton in little more than a year. Strong iron ore prices since then — with the exception of the commodity collapse in 2015 — have helped produce eye-watering profit margins at the biggest miners.

Beijing has long pointed to a power imbalance between the clutch of global mining giants on the one hand and China’s vast but fragmented steel industry on the other. The country imports 1.1 billion tons of iron ore annually to help supply about 500 steel mills, of which the top 10 companies only contribute 40% of the national output.

There was no fanfare when CMRG was established in July, but people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg at the time that its creation was encouraged and closely monitored by top leaders in Beijing. They see a consolidated platform for buying resources as a way to strengthen the country’s negotiating position in an unfriendly international environment.

Despite that, CMRG received little global attention so far. BHP, Vale and Rio’s executives have made few public comments about the company, mostly restricted to recent posts on Chinese social media pledging to work with the new venture. Analysts and investors haven’t seemed overly interested either — it didn’t come up at all in questions during a Rio Tinto investor day last month.

The fact that iron ore supply is so concentrated may limit CMRG’s negotiating power for now, said David Lennox, a resource analyst at Sydney-based Fat Prophets.

“It will only work when there are significant supply sources available for the single buyer to play off against each other, and that is well down the track.”

–With assistance from Mariana Durao and Liz Ng.

(Updates with comments from analysts.)

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(Updates with context, comment)

Dec 16 (Reuters) – Rio Tinto Ltd said on Friday it had completed its long drawn-out acquisition of remaining 49% stake in Turquoise Hill Resources, giving the Anglo-Australian firm a 66% stake in Mongolia's Oyu Tolgoi, the world's largest known copper and gold deposit.

Turquoise Hill shareholders last week voted in favour of Rio Tinto's $3.3 billion bid to take the Canadian company private after months of back and forth.

Minority shareholders were against the deal over valuation, and no. 2 shareholder Pentwater Capital Management accused Rio of concealing delays and huge cost overruns at Oyu Tolgoi.

The larger stake in Oyu Tolgoi will help Rio Tinto compete better with BHP Group over battery metals production as the world speeds up the shift towards green economy.

BHP Group last month made a renewed $6.5 bln play for copper miner OZ Minerals, potentially allowing the miner to consolidate its copper assets in South Australia if the deal goes through.

"We now have a simpler and more efficient ownership and governance structure with our partner the Government of Mongolia, as we proceed together towards sustainable production from the underground mine," Rio Tinto's copper chief executive Bold Baatar said.

Shares of Rio Tinto finished 0.8% higher on the Australian Stock Exchange. (Reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Subhranshu Sahu)

• Pulsed power could transform mining and decarbonise key steps of the mineral extraction process

• BHP invests in both I-Pulse and its affiliate, I-ROX, to develop new disruptive approaches to crushing and grinding of ores

Toulouse, France–(Newsfile Corp. – December 12, 2022) – I-Pulse Inc. (I-Pulse) and I-ROX SAS (I-ROX) are pleased to today announce a comprehensive collaboration arrangement with BHP, a world-leading resources company, to identify and develop applications of pulsed-power technology across multiple aspects of the mining industry.

Earlier this year, I-Pulse and Breakthrough Energy Ventures-Europe (BEV-E) announced the establishment of I-ROX, which is focused on demonstrating that short, high-intensity bursts of energy delivered using pulsed-power technology can quickly and efficiently shatter rocks and mineral ores. This process, which targets tensile weakness in rocks, could substantially reduce the time, energy usage and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions currently generated by critical mining activities. The crushing and grinding of ores is the most energy- and capital-intensive aspect of the entire mining process – it is estimated to comprise approximately 4% of all electrical energy consumption globally and more than half a typical mine’s power usage.

BHP has entered into a collaboration agreement with I-ROX under which the companies will work together to seek to accelerate the development of I-ROX’s technology and business, and BHP will be offered direct access to this potentially disruptive technology. BHP has also made an equity investment in I-ROX, joining I-Pulse and BEV-E as shareholders.

BHP has also made an equity investment in, and entered into a collaboration agreement with, I-Pulse to identify new applications for pulsed-power technology in a mining context. Within the mining industry, pulsed-power technology is currently deployed by I-Pulse’s former subsidiary, Ivanhoe Electric Inc., in mineral exploration via its proprietary Typhoon™ system. Further opportunities to develop and commercialize pulsed-power-based applications include drilling, tunnel boring, blasting and explosives replacement.

These collaboration arrangements will link the mining and processing expertise of BHP with the pulsed-power technology and expertise of I-Pulse and I-ROX, in an effort to transform multiple aspects of mining with the potential for economic and environmental upside. This includes materially reducing GHG emissions associated with rock crushing.

Mike Henry, BHP’s Chief Executive Officer, explained, “The collaboration with I-Pulse and I-ROX will contribute to our growing portfolio of options with potential to both improve the competitiveness of and help decarbonise our current business, and also to unlock new growth opportunities beyond those available today. We are excited by the opportunity to work more closely with I-Pulse and I-ROX and bring our own expertise to the relationship to together develop these solutions.”

Robert Friedland, Chairman of I-Pulse said, “I-Pulse technologies offer transformational improvement potential in so many aspects of life. Pulsed power could enable significant energy savings in mining and manufacturing, as well as opportunities in relation to geothermal energy. The TyphoonTM system is being applied to precisely locate ore bodies and groundwater.

“BHP’s investment and our collaboration offer a meaningful step forward in the development and commercialisation of I-Pulse technologies for the mining industry and particularly in relation to the prospect of the crushing and grinding of rocks for a fraction of today’s energy consumption, environmental impact and costs.”

For more information, please contact:

Bradley Doig (bradley.doig@ipulse-group.com) ORPhil Mitchell (philip.mitchell@ipulse-group.com)

LinkedIn: I-ROX

About I-Pulse

Founded by Robert Friedland and Laurent Frescaline in 2005, I-Pulse Inc., a private U.S. company headquartered in Toulouse, France, uses its unique expertise in electrical energy to power disruptive industrial solutions. Mr. Frescaline is a plasma physicist and an electrical engineer who founded a successful high-technology company specialising in pulsed-power applications with domestic and international governmental agencies. The I-Pulse suite of technologies utilises proprietary capacitors that safely and repeatedly compress and release stored electricity in billionths of a second. The extremely high-powered discharges, which utilise extremely small amounts of energy, generate precise shockwaves directed to shape and assemble metals to previously unachievable degrees of precision; generate electrical fields that reveal chargeable or resistive mineral deposits, or water, at depth; and crush rock containing minerals or gemstones. I-Pulse is commercializing these applications in industries such as advanced manufacturing and mineral exploration. I-Pulse operates its I-Cube research and development facilities in Toulouse, France. Visit www.ipulse-group.com to learn more.

About BHP

BHP was founded in 1885 and is a leading global resources company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, focused on providing the resources the world needs to grow and decarbonise. Copper for renewable energy. Nickel for electric vehicles. Potash for sustainable farming. Iron ore and metallurgical coal for the steel needed for global infrastructure and the energy transition. BHP operates in more than 90 locations including throughout Australia, Chile, and the United States, with a workforce of 80,000 employees and contractors.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/147549

MELBOURNE, Dec 1 (Reuters) – Mining is facing a major shortage of the digital skills it needs, and must step up or lose out to the "cool kids" of Google and Amazon, a BHP Group executive said on Thursday.

Miners are increasingly reliant on computing heft to manage tasks such as automated truck fleets, and using artificial intelligence to delve into reams of data and discover the next big deposit, said Chief Technology Officer Laura Tyler.

"We need more technologists, more data scientists and more mathematicians," she told a Melbourne Mining Club lunch, according to a prepared speech.

"We compete for such talent not just with each other, but with the cool kids such as Google and Amazon … the defence and pharmaceuticals industries, government and NGOs," she told the business luncheon. "Increasingly, we need more digital skills in every aspect of what we do."

A PwC analysis last year suggested that by 2040, the industry will need 21% more mining engineers and geotech engineers, and 29% more metallurgists than it had in 2020, she said.

"We need to train them now … and we need to make sure they see the mining industry as stable, attractive, and dare I say it, exciting," she said.

Australia's mining giants BHP, Rio Tinto Ltd and Fortescue have redoubled efforts to attract new workers to an industry confronting a dire skills shortage, and concerns over job security, sexual harassment and social licence.

So far, however, efforts are bearing fruit, Tyler said.

BHP's First Year Intern program was oversubscribed seven times and resulted in 60 graduates deciding to switch to resources-facing subjects for their next year of university, she said.

A program at Adelaide University is developing a pipeline of exploration geologists, specialising in finding ore deposits deep beneath the surface.

BHP has also established a reentry program to welcome back those who left the industry, while Rio Tinto's efforts to advance jobs in automation and industry efforts to train metallurgists are all bearing fruit – but are still not enough, she said. (Reporting by Melanie Burton. Editing by Gerry Doyle)

(Bloomberg) — BHP Group Ltd., the world’s biggest miner, is warning a shortage of skilled workers from mining engineers to mathematicians will hamper efforts to meet soaring demand for metals crucial to the energy transition.

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Increasingly advanced technological expertise is needed to discover and access new deposits of “difficult to find” key metals such as copper and nickel, Laura Tyler, BHP’s chief technical officer, said in a speech in Melbourne on Thursday.

“They are becoming deeper, harder to access, in more challenging regions,” Tyler said. “As we automate and electrify our operations, move work to remote operating centers, change the very equipment our maintainers look after, we have to train for new skills.”

Demand for copper — a core metal in almost every electrical technology from power grids to electric vehicles — is expected to double over the next 30 years, while the need for nickel, a key component in lithium-ion batteries, will quadruple, Tyler said. Both “future facing” metals are key to BHP’s growth plans, along with fertilizer ingredient potash, as consumption of its main commodity iron ore plateaus and it winds back its exposure to coal.

Read more: BHP Says China Growth Will Help Offset Wider Global Slowdown

To meet demand for the so-called “green metals,” by 2040 the world will need 21% more mining and geotech engineers and 29% more metallurgists, Tyler said, citing PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP research. “We need to train them now,” she added.

“Even as we retrain our people to meet the challenges of the new way of operating, we know this will not be enough,” she said. “We need more technologists. More data scientists. And more mathematicians.”

Demand for less skilled forms of labor in the sector, however, will drop thanks to automation of vehicles and equipment, she said.

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The most you can lose on any stock (assuming you don’t use leverage) is 100% of your money. But on the bright side, if you buy shares in a high quality company at the right price, you can gain well over 100%. For instance, the price of Anglo American plc (LON:AAL) stock is up an impressive 143% over the last five years. It’s also up 25% in about a month.

After a strong gain in the past week, it’s worth seeing if longer term returns have been driven by improving fundamentals.

View our latest analysis for Anglo American

In his essay The Superinvestors of Graham-and-Doddsville Warren Buffett described how share prices do not always rationally reflect the value of a business. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

During five years of share price growth, Anglo American achieved compound earnings per share (EPS) growth of 14% per year. This EPS growth is slower than the share price growth of 19% per year, over the same period. This suggests that market participants hold the company in higher regard, these days. And that’s hardly shocking given the track record of growth.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

earnings-per-share-growth

It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on Anglo American’s earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. As it happens, Anglo American’s TSR for the last 5 years was 224%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. And there’s no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

A Different Perspective

It’s good to see that Anglo American has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 28% in the last twelve months. That’s including the dividend. That’s better than the annualised return of 26% over half a decade, implying that the company is doing better recently. Given the share price momentum remains strong, it might be worth taking a closer look at the stock, lest you miss an opportunity. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. For instance, we’ve identified 2 warning signs for Anglo American (1 doesn’t sit too well with us) that you should be aware of.

For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on GB exchanges.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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(Bloomberg) — BHP Group Ltd. made an improved A$9.6 billion ($6.4 billion) offer to acquire copper producer OZ Minerals Ltd. as the world’s top miner seeks more exposure to rising demand from clean energy and electric cars.

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OZ Minerals will recommend shareholders vote in favor of the A$28.25 a share offer, the Adelaide, Australia-based company said Friday, after rejecting an earlier A$25 per share bid in August. The proposed acquisition would be BHP’s largest since the $12.1 billion purchase of Petrohawk Energy Corp. in 2011.

Miners across the globe are hungry for copper assets to add a metal that’s regarded as critical to the energy transition due to its use in electricity networks, renewable energy and electric vehicles. Demand for copper is set to jump 58% by 2040, according to BloombergNEF, and BHP is looking to consolidate its position as one of the world’s largest producers.

BHP has said so-called future facing metals copper and nickel, as well as fertilizer ingredient potash, are key to the company’s growth as demand plateaus for iron ore, its most important commodity, and the world moves away from fossil fuels. BHP has reduced its coal business in recent years, and sold its entire oil and gas business to Woodside Energy Group this year.

“The combination of BHP and OZL’s assets, skills and technical expertise provides a unique opportunity not available under separate ownership,” BHP Chief Executive Officer Mike Henry said.

OZ Minerals shares rose as much as 4.5% to A$27.49, the highest level since April, and traded at A$27.38 as of 12:13 p.m. in Sydney on Friday.

The latest offer is 49% above the OZ Minerals share price on Aug. 5, the trading session before BHP made its first bid. BHP will now conduct due diligence and the offer will be its “best and final” proposal, the company said.

OZ Minerals, which has operations adjacent to BHP’s huge Olympic Dam mine in South Australia, would add around 7% to BHP’s annual copper production. The target also has mines in Brazil and a key nickel project in Western Australia.

“BHP’s revised proposal is a clear reflection of OZ Minerals’ unique set of highly strategic, quality assets in quality jurisdictions and an enviable multi-generational growth pipeline of copper and nickel assets in strong demand due to global electrification,” OZ Minerals Chief Executive Officer Andrew Cole said.

The offer came as Rio Tinto Group, BHP’s biggest competitor, hit another roadblock in its bid to take full control of Turquoise Hill, a Canadian company that has what would be one of the world’s largest copper mines in Mongolia.

(Adds shares in sixth paragraph. A previous version of the story corrected the currency in headline.)

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(Bloomberg) — Oz Minerals Ltd. has requested a trading halt pending an announcement in relation to a potential change-of-control transaction, three months after the copper miner rejected a A$8.4 billion ($5.7 billion) bid by BHP Group Ltd.

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The securities will remain in the trading halt until the commencement of normal trading on Friday, or when the announcement is released to the market, Oz Minerals said in a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange on Wednesday.

BHP was the likely bidder, but it’s also possible it could be a new entrant because the mining giant hadn’t entered a trading halt, Shaw and Partners analyst Peter O’Connor said in a note. The bidder would need to offer “A$30 a share or close to it,” he said.

BHP’s initial offer for Oz Minerals was for A$25 a share. The company’s shares closed at A$26.30 in Sydney on Tuesday.

A spokesperson from BHP declined to comment.

See also: Oz Minerals Said to Seek A$10 Billion in Potential Sale

BHP, which hived off its oil and gas assets this year, is seeking growth in commodities tied to trends including low-emissions transport and clean energy — particularly copper for renewables and nickel for lithium-ion batteries. The mining giant is also pouring billions of dollars into a giant new potash mine in Canada to enter the fertilizer sector.

(Updates with comment from analyst in 3rd paragraph.)

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If you want to know who really controls Anglo American plc (LON:AAL), then you’ll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. We can see that institutions own the lion’s share in the company with 72% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

And as as result, institutional investors reaped the most rewards after the company’s stock price gained 14% last week. One-year return to shareholders is currently 25% and last week’s gain was the icing on the cake.

In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Anglo American.

See our latest analysis for Anglo American

ownership-breakdownWhat Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Anglo American?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it’s included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

Anglo American already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can’t rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It’s therefore worth looking at Anglo American’s earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.

earnings-and-revenue-growth

Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. Hedge funds don’t have many shares in Anglo American. The company’s largest shareholder is BlackRock, Inc., with ownership of 9.0%. Public Investment Corporation Limited is the second largest shareholder owning 7.3% of common stock, and The Vanguard Group, Inc. holds about 4.2% of the company stock.

After doing some more digging, we found that the top 21 have the combined ownership of 51% in the company, suggesting that no single shareholder has significant control over the company.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock’s expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Anglo American

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

Our information suggests that Anglo American plc insiders own under 1% of the company. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven’t picked up on. As it is a large company, we’d only expect insiders to own a small percentage of it. But it’s worth noting that they own UK£81m worth of shares. Arguably recent buying and selling is just as important to consider. You can click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

With a 17% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Anglo American. While this group can’t necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run.

Private Company Ownership

Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 10%, of the company’s shares. It’s hard to draw any conclusions from this fact alone, so its worth looking into who owns those private companies. Sometimes insiders or other related parties have an interest in shares in a public company through a separate private company.

Next Steps:

It’s always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand Anglo American better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks for example – Anglo American has 2 warning signs (and 1 which is a bit unpleasant) we think you should know about.

If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can check this free report showing analyst forecasts for its future.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Join A Paid User Research SessionYou’ll receive a US$30 Amazon Gift card for 1 hour of your time while helping us build better investing tools for the individual investors like yourself. Sign up here

LONDON (Reuters) – BHP Group is teaming up with steelmaker ArcelorMittal and two others to test a new technology to reduce carbon emissions in steel making at two plants in Belgium and North America.

The trials, at ArcelorMittal's Gent steel blast furnace in Belgium and another plant in North America, also involve Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering (MHIENG), which developed the carbon capture technology, and Mitsubishi Development Pty, another supplier of steel-making coal.

By discharging over 3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, the steel industry accounts for 7-9% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

"What's really interesting in this partnership is that … it is not a desktop exercise but a real world application in an operational plant," said BHP Chief Commercial Officer Vandita Pant.

The world's number one miner produced more than 37 million tonnes of metallurgical coal, an essential ingredient to produce steel, in the financial year to June.

Large mining companies have been partnering with technology firms and others in the supply chain to find ways to reduce their carbon footprint and help reduce emissions in some of the most energy-intensive industries.

BHP's partnerships, for example, also include one with India's Tata Steel, which uses biomass as a source of energy.

"There isn't a silver bullet, there isn't one path or technology for low-carbon emissions in steelmaking," Pant said.

"We are covering many different technologies and geographies with these partnerships … to enable lower GHG emissions steel and support the reduction of carbon intensity in blast furnaces," Pant said.

(Reporting by Clara Denina; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)

Insiders who bought US$10.0k worth of Anglo American plc (LON:AAL) stock in the last year recovered part of their losses as the stock rose by 5.4% last week. However, the purchase is proving to be an expensive wager as insiders are yet to get ahead of their losses which currently stand at US$424 since the time of purchase.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

View our latest analysis for Anglo American

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Anglo American

While there weren’t any large insider transactions in the last twelve months, it’s still worth looking at the trading.

You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

insider-trading-volume

Anglo American is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insider Ownership

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it’s a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Insiders own 0.2% of Anglo American shares, worth about UK£67m. We’ve certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Anglo American Insiders?

Our data shows a little insider buying, but no selling, in the last three months. That said, the purchases were not large. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Insiders own shares in Anglo American and we see no evidence to suggest they are worried about the future. While we like knowing what’s going on with the insider’s ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. At Simply Wall St, we’ve found that Anglo American has 2 warning signs (1 is significant!) that deserve your attention before going any further with your analysis.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

Join A Paid User Research SessionYou’ll receive a US$30 Amazon Gift card for 1 hour of your time while helping us build better investing tools for the individual investors like yourself. Sign up here

LONDON (Reuters) – BHP Group's Chief Executive Mike Henry said on Friday he was "cautiously optimistic" about the economic outlook for China, despite uncertainty.

"There is uncertainty in China – albeit, our view is that China is still going to provide a bit of stability or underpinning to global economic growth over the next 12 months," the head of the world's largest listed mining company said in a pre-recorded interview at the FT Mining Summit in London.

China, the world's second biggest economy, accounts for more than 50% of global demand for raw materials. Its economic outlook has been clouded by stringent COVID-19 curbs, disruptions to energy and food supplies caused by the Ukraine crisis and slowing global growth on the back of sharp rises in borrowing costs to curb red-hot inflation.

The International Monetary Fund forecasts China's GDP will expand by just 3.2% this year, down from 8.1% growth in 2021.

So far, China has fought shy of the huge amounts of stimulus it introduced when economic weakness led to a drop in demand and a commodity price crash in 2015-6.

"We are seeing some green shoots in China by way of property sectors, so increased sales and increased completions," Henry said. "We are not yet seeing that pull through to an increase in housing starts but we are seeing some more supportive policy, with encouragement being given to the banks to relax some of their lending practices for the property sector."

BHP is a top producer of iron ore, used in the making of steel going into the construction industry, with more than 250 million tonnes mined in the financial year to June.

"We see steel production in China probably seeing another billion tonne-plus year, a slight decline from last year by 1-2%, and then rebounding next year by circa 1%, for what would then be the fifth year running of over a billion tonnes of steel production," Henry said.

The mining giant is currently studying whether it could increase iron ore productivity above 300 million tonnes a year, Henry added.

(Reporting by Clara Denina; Editing by Susan Fenton)

(Bloomberg) — De Beers told its diamond buyers they can purchase stones on sweetened terms at its next sale, in the first sign the market is slowing after a bonanza that started during the global pandemic.

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The diamond industry was one of the surprise winners as the world economy rebounded from the first effects of the pandemic. Consumer demand for diamond jewelry grew strongly last year, while supply remained constrained.

De Beers raised prices of rough diamonds throughout much of 2021 as it sought to recover from the first year of the pandemic. The unit of Anglo American Plc has reported bumper sales so far this year after sanctions on Alrosa PJSC forced its Russian rival to stop selling through much of the spring, causing many buyers to seek supply from elsewhere.

That’s now starting to unravel. Alrosa started quietly selling again in the summer and stones from Russia have continued to flow. At the same time, Chinese demand has been hit by Covid-19 lockdowns, while surging inflation threatens wider consumer demand in the US and Europe.

De Beers responded on Friday by telling customers in a memo that it would be doubling the size of its so-called buyback process, according to people familiar with the situation.

The buyback system allows customers to handpick a percentage of the stones in any parcel and sell them back to De Beers. It allows them to remove stones they think may be unprofitable and helps prevent too much unwanted supply entering the market. De Beers told customers Friday that the buyback would be increased from 10% to 20% for diamonds bigger than 1 carat at its next sale scheduled for the end of this month, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private.

The increased buyback is a way for De Beers to offer sweeter terms without having to cut prices, a move that can trigger price falls across the wider market. It’s also a mechanism the company has used in the past when the market softens.

A De Beers spokesman declined to comment.

De Beers sells to around 60 handpicked customers who either cut, polish and manufacture the rough diamonds into jewelry themselves or sell to other companies which don’t have access to the sales.

The deteriorating market comes as De Beers is in the process of changing its chief executive officer. Anglo American said last week that Equinor ASA’s Al Cook will replace Bruce Cleaver, becoming only the second ever outsider to lead the iconic diamond company.

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(Bloomberg) — Woodside Energy Group Ltd., Australia’s biggest oil and gas producer, said first-half profit soared more than fivefold on the back of higher prices and the takeover of BHP Group Ltd.’s energy assets.

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Net income for the six months through June 30 rose 417% to $1.64 billion as the average realized price more than doubled from a year earlier to $96.40 a barrel of oil equivalent, the Perth-based company said Tuesday. The completion of the integration of BHP’s petroleum business in June also helped lift production by 19% to 55 million boe.

Woodside has faced investor and activist scrutiny over its increased contribution to climate change following the all-share takeover of BHP’s petroleum assets, which made it Australia’s largest energy company and one of the world’s biggest liquefied natural gas suppliers. The company has used the global energy crunch to defend its decision to continue to invest in production such as the Scarborough project, which is set to supply its first LNG cargo in 2026.

“The upheavals in global and Australian energy markets witnessed over the course of the past six months have shone a spotlight on on the importance of gas in the world energy mix and underscores our confidence in the longer-term demand outlook for gas, which makes up 70% of Woodside’s portfolio,” Chief Executive Officer Meg O’Neill said in a statement.

The result was “in-line to marginally better than expectations,” Citigroup Inc. analysts Paul McTaggart and Tom Wallington said in a note. Price volatility and geopolitical tension are among key risks for the company, along with potential cost blowouts in new oil and gas projects, they said.

Woodside said it would pay a half-year dividend of $1.09 a share, more than three times last year’s level. The company’s shares gained as much as 3.8% in Sydney on Tuesday to their highest level since July 2019.

(Updates with analyst comment, share price from fourth paragraph)

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Some investors rely on dividends for growing their wealth, and if you’re one of those dividend sleuths, you might be intrigued to know that Anglo American plc (LON:AAL) is about to go ex-dividend in just 3 days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before a company’s record date, which is the date on which the company determines which shareholders are entitled to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is important as the process of settlement involves two full business days. So if you miss that date, you would not show up on the company’s books on the record date. Thus, you can purchase Anglo American’s shares before the 18th of August in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 23rd of September.

The company’s next dividend payment will be US$1.24 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$2.42 to shareholders. Based on the last year’s worth of payments, Anglo American stock has a trailing yield of around 6.7% on the current share price of £29.63. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. So we need to check whether the dividend payments are covered, and if earnings are growing.

View our latest analysis for Anglo American

Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. Fortunately Anglo American’s payout ratio is modest, at just 42% of profit. Yet cash flows are even more important than profits for assessing a dividend, so we need to see if the company generated enough cash to pay its distribution. It paid out more than half (60%) of its free cash flow in the past year, which is within an average range for most companies.

It’s encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don’t drop precipitously.

Click here to see the company’s payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

historic-dividendHave Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. That’s why it’s comforting to see Anglo American’s earnings have been skyrocketing, up 36% per annum for the past five years.

Another key way to measure a company’s dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Anglo American has delivered 13% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years. Both per-share earnings and dividends have both been growing rapidly in recent times, which is great to see.

To Sum It Up

Is Anglo American worth buying for its dividend? From a dividend perspective, we’re encouraged to see that earnings per share have been growing, the company is paying out less than half of its earnings, and a bit over half its free cash flow. Anglo American looks solid on this analysis overall, and we’d definitely consider investigating it more closely.

So while Anglo American looks good from a dividend perspective, it’s always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. For example, we’ve found 2 warning signs for Anglo American (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) that deserve your attention before investing in the shares.

A common investing mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a full list of high-yield dividend stocks.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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Anglo American has become the latest mining group to report a sharp drop in earnings and shareholder payouts as waning demand for commodities and cost pressures squeeze margins. The FTSE 100 miner on Thursday reported a 28 per cent drop in underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation to $8.7bn in the first six months of the year compared with the same period a year earlier, on revenues of $18.1bn. Anglo American blamed the drop in earnings on tight labour driven by Covid-19 absenteeism, supply chain disruptions, extreme weather and inflationary pressures.

(Bloomberg) — Chinese authorities are investigating the Minister of Industry and Information Technology Xiao Yaqing on suspicion of disciplinary violations, making him the most senior sitting cabinet official to be ensnared in a disciplinary probe in almost four years.

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The case was a “violation of discipline and law,” the country’s top anti-graft agency said in a statement Thursday, avoiding the common phrasing “serious violation of discipline and law.” The regulators didn’t offer further details on the alleged crimes by Xiao, whose ministry spearheads China’s efforts to build technologies from semiconductors to aviation, and supports the nation’s most promising startups in areas from chipmaking to bio-tech.

The probe against the 62-year-old official is unfolding weeks before the Communist Party’s 20th congress later this year, which is expected to reshuffle the country’s leadership. President Xi Jinping, who’s expected to secure a third term in the shake-up, has consolidated power over the past decade in part due to an enduring corruption crackdown that brought down dozens of former top cadres.

The announcement coincided with a monthly meeting of the Communist Party’s Politburo, which vowed to strive for the “best outcome” for economic growth this year, as concerns mount over the risks of a property crisis spreading to the broader financial system.

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Xiao’s ministry is the regulator for the country’s heavy industry, automobile, telecom and electronics sectors, overseeing companies from Huawei Technologies Co. to Xiaomi Corp. He has held the rank of cabinet minister since 2016, earlier leading government agencies including the country’s top state-owned assets watchdog. He attracted public attention earlier on Thursday as he was not included in a list of central government officials slated to attend the upcoming Party Congress.

Prior to his political career, Xiao mainly worked in the aluminum industry and was president of Aluminum Corp. of China when it bought a $14 billion stake in Rio Tinto Group with Alcoa Inc. in 2008. That derailed BHP Billiton Ltd.’s hostile bid for the world’s third-largest mining company and marked one of the biggest Chinese outbound investments.

Former Vice Public Security Minister Meng Hongwei, who was placed under investigation in October 2018, was the last official of such a senior rank to fall.

(Updates with details, background of Xiao)

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Investors set for last round of bumper payouts as margins are squeezed by falling commodity prices and cost inflation

Rio Tinto has signalled an end to the era of record returns in the mining sector, as the Anglo-Australian group reported a sharp drop in half-year profit and more than halved its dividend payment. Rio, the world’s largest producer of steelmaking ingredient iron ore, reported underlying earnings of $8.6bn for the six months to June, down from a record $12.2bn last year, on sales of almost $30bn. While that is still the second-highest half-year payout on record and in line with its dividend policy, the dividend is significantly lower than last year’s payment of $9.1bn and below what analysts had expected.