Australian mining giant Fortescue Metals Group has more than tripled its half-year profit
, beating market expectations, on the back of a surge in the price of steelmaking raw material iron ore and a record number shipments.
The bumper profit which soared 280 per cent to $US2.4 billion for the six months to December 31 delivered a dividend windfall of $698 million to mining magnate and philanthropist Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest, Fortescue's biggest shareholder.On the back of Chinese steelmakers' elevated demand for Western Australian iron ore, Fortescue's first-half shipments rose 7 per cent from the same time the previous year to reach a record high of 88.6 million tonnes, the company said.
Fortescue and its fellow mining heavyweights have been keeping close watch on the fast-moving coronavirus epidemic in China, the world's biggest consumer of iron ore, as fears about the disruption rock global commodities markets. While factories and shipping ports are locked down across the country, Australian exporters have been in talks with customers to delay shipments in order to avoid declarations of "force majeure" on contracts.
Iron ore prices in 2019 surged nearly 60 per cent, with the benchmark price hitting about $US120 a tonne on the back of strong demand and a global supply outage caused by a mine dam collapse in Brazil. But the prices have since returned to about $US90 as supply normalises and China's economy slows. With a 35 per cent stake in the company he founded, Mr Forrest last year earned $1.24 billion from Fortescue's full-year dividend. Dividends from his holding help fund his philanthropic organisation, Minderoo Foundation.
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