BHP Billiton Ltd paid out a record dividend as profits hit a four-year high on stronger prices and confirmed that it will return the bulk of almost US$11 billion in asset sales to investors.
The world’s top miner yesterday raised its annual dividend 42 percent, including a record final payment, although it said it will wait to confirm how and when it will hand back a further windfall from deals agreed last month to sell US shale assets.
BHP follows Rio Tinto Group and Vale SA in raising payouts, as investors press for greater rewards.
While BHP continues to have a positive outlook bolstered by rising commodities demand in the developed world, it said key oil, copper and coal units are forecast to see rising costs, and also flagged concerns over slower growth in China and global trade tensions.
Full-year underlying earnings jumped 33 percent to US$8.9 billion in the 12 months through June, Melbourne-based BHP said in a statement.
That compared with a US$9.2 billion estimate among analysts’ forecasts compiled by Bloomberg.
The producer booked US$5.2 billion of after-tax impairments, including a previously flagged writedown on the value of the shale assets, a US$2.3 billion charge as a result of US President Donald Trump’s US tax reform and US$650 million of costs related to the deadly Samarco dam failure in Brazil.
The producer is pursuing nine significant projects, spending about US$1 billion on exploration work and could consider a potential acquisition to lift output in conventional oil, chief executive officer Andrew Mackenzie said.
“We are really pulling the growth lever pretty hard,” he told reporters on a conference call.
BHP will seek to accelerate conventional oil production to capture better prices, he said.
Output from offshore oil and gas assets is forecast to fall as much as 6 percent in the current fiscal year as fields decline.
The producer’s cash pile is being boosted after it struck the deals last month to sell US shale assets, including to BP PLC.
The net proceeds will be returned once the agreements are completed, Mackenzie said.
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
RSS