(Nigel Jared/Getty Images)
In a somewhat slow day for corporate news, AngloGold Ashanti said bad weather in Australia failed to derail a strong start to the year, and KWV announced it has some high-profile new investors. In international news, US demand has helped Japanese carmaker Honda book record profits.
AngloGold Ashanti said on Friday production its quarter to end March picked up 2% to 581 000 ounces as planned despite a hit from rains and flooding in western Australia, which cut 15 000 ounces. The group kept its full-year guidance of between 2.59 million and 2.79 million unchanged, with production expected to be weighted to the second half of the year, particularly the fourth quarter. “This is a good start to the year, with another strong safety result and a good overall performance from the portfolio,” said CEO Alberto Calderon. “We’re seeing greater consistency from most of our operations; in Brazil, both sites have shown significantly better performance, with greater production control and stability. Geita and Kibali were strong again, and Obuasi’s ramp-up remains on track.” AngloGold was up 2.5% in afternoon trade but was down about 12% on a one-year basis. It was a generally good day for precious metal miners, with gold up about 1.4% at the time.
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