Barrick Gold Corp reported an increase of nearly 55 percent in quarterly profit on Wednesday as gold prices rose, strengthening its ability to snap up mines including copper, its chief executive said.
Investors' concern about a global economy brought to their knees by the coronavirus pandemic so far this year has lifted "safe-haven" gold by 12 percent, while copper, seen as a bellwether for economic growth, has dropped by about 15 percent.
Barrick chief executive officer Mark Bristow has previously said the world's No. 2 gold miner plans to expand its exposure to copper due to its higher electrification consumption.
Barrick announced that its first-quarter net income attributable to the company's equity investors increased from $111 million or $0.06 per share in the previous year to $400 million or $0.22 per share.
The adjusted net earnings were up $285 million from the previous year's $184 million. Revenue for the quarter rose from $2.09 billion in the previous year to $2.72 billion.
From January to March, Barrick produced 1.25 million ounces of gold compared to 1.37 million in the quarter of the year. All-in operating costs grew from $825 to $954. Meanwhile, the average gold price realized went up from $1,307 a year ago to $1,589 an ounce.
The copper production rose from 106 million to 115 million pounds. All-in operating costs were down from $2.46 to $2.04 a pound.
Bristow said the company's activities were carried out as expected, including a emphasis on dealing with the global COVID-19 pandemic during the latter part of the period, including prioritizing health and safety measures and addressing government restrictions.
After shutting down its mining operations in Papua New Guinea, Barrick, which retained its quarterly dividend of 7 cents per share, slashed its annual output projection for the yellow metal.
The Canadian miner now expects 4.6-5.0 million ounces of attributable gold production versus 4.8-5.2 million ounces previously. Barrick's stocks have added around 52 percent since the start of 2020 against S&P 500's retreat of minus 11 percent.
Papua New Guinea's government declared in April that it will not extend a special 20-year mining lease for the Porgera gold mine that is jointly operated by Barrick and China's Zijin Mining due to environmental degradation and social unrest.
Meanwhile, the board agrees that the current level of dividends is justified by the competitiveness of the company, the ongoing reduction in net debt and the overall strength of our balance sheet backed by the detailed five-year and 10-year plans that it discussed with the market, Graham Shuttleworth, Chief Financial Officer, disclosed.
