This article first appeared on GuruFocus.

Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. (IMPUY) has signaled a sharp rebound in second-half earnings as a powerful rally in platinum group metals flowed through realized prices. In a trading statement on Tuesday, the Johannesburg-listed miner said profit for the period is expected to be between 9.1 billion rand and 9.45 billion rand, implying an increase of about 400% from a year earlier. Management attributed the swing largely to a significant appreciation in the average prices received for its products, setting a constructive tone ahead of full-year results from South African producers.

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That earnings momentum has been underpinned by metal prices rather than volumes. Platinum almost doubled in the six months through December, while palladium climbed about 66% over the same period, before both continued to rise into 2026 and then surrendered most of those gains last week amid a broader pullback in precious metals. The strength has not been isolated to one company: Valterra Platinum Ltd., until recently a subsidiary of Anglo American Plc, said in January that its profit last year could have increased by as much as 125% to 15.9 billion rand, highlighting how pricing has possibly reshaped sector profitability.

Longer term, demand dynamics remain a key variable. Platinum and palladium are primarily used in emissions-reduction systems for gasoline and diesel vehicles, while electric vehicles do not require the metals, which could gradually alter consumption patterns. Producers have therefore been focused on identifying alternative sources of demand, even as South Africa remains by far the world's largest supplier of platinum and continues to anchor global supply.