BHP Billiton Profit More Than Doubles To $6.1 Bln

 

MELBOURNE - Anglo-Australian miner BHP Billiton Ltd. said its first half profit more than doubled to $6.1 billion after selling record quantities of key commodities and shedding a loss-making nickel mine.

The world's biggest miner reported a 134 percent rise in net profit for the six months to Dec. 31 -- to $6.1 billion from $2.6 billion a year earlier.

The result was inflated by the sale of the Ravensthorpe nickel mine in Western Australia state for $340 million to First Quantum Minerals Ltd. BHP closed the loss-making mine early last year.

Excluding one-time gains, BHP Billion's net profit was $5.7 billion, down 7 percent from $6.1 billion in the first half of the previous fiscal year. That was stronger than analysts' expectations of $5.1 billion. BHP Billiton said its result was "sound" given uncertainty in the global economy and lower prices for commodities were offset by higher volumes.

The company said global economic conditions had improved over the past six months, as the United States and Europe lifted industrial output from previously depressed levels and China returned to double digit growth. But BHP remains cautious about the speed and strength of the global economic recovery across the developed world.

"It appears that stimulus measures that supported the recovery have not fully addressed structural issues such as weak labor markets and excess production capacity in developed economies," it said.

The company said a further variable would be the impact of any measures to control loan growth in China.

"It is evident that in the short term, the Chinese government will focus on containing asset inflation," it said.

BHP said commodity markets will continue to be largely dependent on Chinese and Indian demand.

The company’s address is 180 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, Victoria 3000, (61) 1300 55 47 57, fax: (61 3) 9609 3015.