GLNCY Glencore Plc (PK)

--Glencore shares trade lower after the company cuts 2019 production guidance for copper, ferrochrome

--The company said its African copper operations didn't meet operational expectations

--Updated guidance for full-year copper and cobalt production will be provided at the company's interim financial results

By Oliver Griffin

Shares in Glencore PLC (GLEN.LN) fell Wednesday after the company cut full-year guidance in copper and ferrochrome production by 1% and 10% respectively.

The Anglo-Swiss commodity trading and mining company said that it now expects to produce 1.45 million metric tons of copper in 2019, revising down its full-year outlook by 10,000 tons to account for smelter maintenance at the Mopani mine in Zambia being brought forward to this year.

Ferrochrome production guidance for the year was cut to 1.48 million tons, from 1.64 million tons previously. The reduced outlook reflects an extended winter shutdown program, Glencore said.

Glencore said copper production in the second quarter of the year fell 2% to 342,300 tons, from 350,800 tons in the year-earlier period. Combined with a year-on-year decrease in the first quarter, first-half copper production was down 5% at 663,000 tons.

The company attributed the falls in production to missed operational performances at its African copper operations.

Chief Executive Ivan Glasenberg said: "Our African copper business did not meet expected operational performance."

Mr. Glasenberg said that as well as bringing forward maintenance at Mopani, Glencore has also moved to address challenges at its Katanga mine in the Congo.

For other minerals, the production report was more positive. Cobalt and zinc production during the second quarter rose 7% each to 10,400 tons and 273,600 tons, contributing to increases of 28% and 8% respectively for the first half of the year.

The mining company also reported that total second-quarter coal production rose 12% to 35 million tons, while first-half coal production was up 10% at 68.2 million tons. Elsewhere in the energy segment oil production fell, with Glencore reporting total net-interest oil output of 2.2 million barrels in the first half of the year.

Glencore said updated copper and cobalt production guidance for the 2019 will be provided at its half-year financial results in August.

Shares at 1305 GMT were down 1.7% at 268.25 pence.

Write to Oliver Griffin at oliver.griffin@dowjones.com; @OliGGriffin

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 31, 2019 09:56 ET (13:56 GMT)

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