Glencore Earnings Plummet From Record Highs as Energy Prices Subside

By Christian Moess Laursen

Glencore's earnings halved after coal prices retreated from the record highs that followed Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The world's biggest miner by revenue said Wednesday that its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization plummeted to $17.10 billion from $34.06 billion a year prior. Analysts had forecast $17.15 billion based on a consensus provided by the Switzerland-based company.

As usual, the lion's share of earnings came from its industrial activities, with adjusted Ebitda falling to $13.20 billion from $27.265 billion in 2022, when coal assets contributed $17.92 billion after Russia's war in Ukraine drove prices of the fossil fuel to historic highs. Last year, earnings from coal amounted to $7.97 billion.

The decline reflects lower average energy prices, largely of coal, than the unprecedented levels seen in 2022, the commodity mining-and-trading heavyweight said.

Meanwhile, adjusted earnings from copper fell to $3.95 billion from $5.73 billion, while zinc earnings declined to $995 million from $1.48 billion.

Adjusted Ebitda from marketing activities--Glencore's trading arm--dropped to $3.90 billion from $6.795 billion, likewise due to normalized energy markets.

Write to Christian Moess Laursen at christian.moess@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 21, 2024 02:34 ET (07:34 GMT)

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