Freeport-McMoran beats second-quarter profit estimates on higher copper prices
Adds details about results, executive comment and background from paragraphs 4-8
July 23 (Reuters) -Miner Freeport-McMoran FCX.N beat second-quarter profit estimates on Tuesday, as higher copper prices offset lower production.
Average price of copper rose in the second quarter compared to the previous year on property stimulus measures and better-than-expected industrial output data in China.
The Phoenix, Arizona-based Freeport's quarterly average realized price for copper was up at $4.48 per pound, compared with $3.84 per pound from a year earlier.
"Copper pricing was strong in the second quarter. The long-term outlook for copper is supported by copper’s increasingly important role in the global economy and limited available supplies to meet growing demand" company executives said in a statement.
However, the company's quarterly copper production was down 2.8% at 1,037 millions of recoverable pounds from a year ago and unit net cash costs was up 17.7% at $1.73 per pound.
The company said its quarterly copper sales were down 10% at 931 million pounds, hurt by shipping delays in Indonesia associated with the timing of renewing its copper concentrate export license.
Earlier this month, Indonesia said that it would allow Freeport to continue exporting copper concentrate for the rest of the year until its new smelter reaches full capacity despite a ban on shipments of raw minerals.
The company reported an adjusted profit of 46 cents per share for the quarter ended June 30, compared with analysts' average estimate of 38 cents, according to LSEG data.
The copper miner's quarterly revenue rose 15.5% to $6.62 billion from the previous year, beating estimates of $5.99 billion.
Reporting by Tanay Dhumal in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel
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