BHP bullish on demand for China recovery, earnings fall in 1H

By Sameer Manekar and Melanie Burton

Feb 21 (Reuters) – Global mining group BHP is optimistic about the outlook for demand through fiscal 2024 as China, the top consumer of metals, reopens and shakes up its property sector, the company said on Tuesday, after its first half of 2023. revenues 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 optimistic about the demand outlook in the second half of fiscal 2023 and into fiscal 2024 as activity in China strengthens following recent economic policy decisions,” the chief executive said. MikeHenry.

“We expect domestic demand in China and India to provide stabilizing counterweights to the ongoing slowdown in global trade and the US, Japanese and European economies,” he said in a statement.

Last year, the miner faced rising costs, a tight domestic labor market and falling iron ore prices due to China’s strict zero-COVID policy.

But the reopening of the world’s second-largest economy and a shift in policy in the real estate sector have BHP looking in good humor at the outlook for commodity demand.

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

For the six months ended Dec. 31, the world’s largest publicly traded miner said basic profit from continuing operations was $6.6 billion for the six months ended Dec. 31, compared with $9,720 million. the previous year.

The figure was lower than Vuma Financial’s estimate of a profit of $6.82 billion.

(Reported from Sameer Manekar and Himanshi Akhand in Bangalore. Editado en español by Marion Giraldo)