Baar,25.08.2016

Glencore succeeds in reducing the level of its debt

The Glencore commodity trading company, which operates from offices in Baar, has announced it has managed to reduce the level of level its debt from $817 million to $615 million over the first six months of this year.
 
As Ivan Glasenberg, the company’s CEO, announced to representatives of the media at a press conference on Wednesday, “The worst is over and it is pleasing to report that the demand for raw materials, particularly in China, is high again.”
 
As to the company’s turnover between January and June of this year, this fell by 6% to $69.4 billion with its EBIT falling by 38% to $875 million. This was due in part to lower prices for raw materials as a result of restriction of production in the case of coal, zinc, copper and crude oil. However, commodity prices had improved significantly since the beginning of this year.
 
Glasenberg remained upbeat about the company’s cash flow, “At $2.8 billion this is very solid,” he said, enabling the company’s net debt to be decreased by 9% to $23.6 billion in the first half of this year.
 
One policy the company implemented to reduce the levels of its debt was to cut back on investments, which it duly did to the tune of 51% to around $1.6 billion.
 
In a further move to reduce its debt, the company announced it had sold certain production rights with regard to gold and copper to the Evolution Mining company, which operates in Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia. This is due to be completed by the end of this year, by which time it is expected a further A$ 880 million, or $670 million, will have flowed into the company’s coffers.
 
The CEO also announced that next year shareholders could look forward to a dividend, after one was withheld this year as a result of an economy drive.