Fortescue reported underlying earnings of $US5.9 billion ($9 billion),36 per cent above the previous half-year period,as it declared a fully franked interim dividend of $1.08 per share,44 per cent higher,and a net profit of $US3.3 billion ($5.06 billion).
Otranto said a December rail derailment impacted iron ore shipments and had flowed into January. “We’ve finished all the recovery works in record time. We were able to de-bottleneck some of our rail system and add a little bit more capacity,” he said.
Shipments of hematite ore fell to 95 million tonnes,about three million tonnes below the previous period,and the amount of ore mined decreased by 10 million tonnes to 105 million tonnes. The volume of ore processed also fell slightly. Fortescue attributed the drop to infrastructure maintenance activities and an increase in waste mining.
Fortescue’s shares started the year at a record high as ore prices peaked above $US140 a tonne in anticipationChina would unleash a fresh wave of stimulus to fix its ailing economy,but the miner’s shares followed iron ore’s downward trajectory in the intervening weeks.
The metal,still at a 10-year-high,is now sitting around $US125. Fortescue’s shares rose about 2 per cent to $27.79 in trade by midday.