Glencore raises earnings guidance

Mining and commodities trading group Glencore raised its earnings guidance on Thursday and said it expected the increased take-up of electric vehicles and demand for storage to boost demand for its products.

The company increased its full-year forecast for a profit measure called marketing adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) by $100 million to a range of between $2.4 billion and $2.7 billion.

It also said first-half adjusted core earnings or EBITDA increased by 68 per cent, while EBIT rose 334 per cent from a year before, while net debt fell $1.6 billion from the end of 2016 to $13.9 billion.

"Amid the best global economic growth momentum seen in recent years, our assets reported strong margins, generated by significantly better commodity prices and the favourable cost structures now embedded across the portfolio," Glencore chief executive Ivan Glasenberg said in a statement.

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“As we look forward, the potential large-scale roll-out of electric vehicles and energy storage systems looks set to unlock material new sources of demand for enabling underlying commodities, including copper, cobalt, zinc and nickel.”

-(Reuters)