South Africa’s Harmony Gold (HARJ.J) said on Wednesday its half-year profit rose 13%, as surging gold prices offset lower output and grades, enabling the miner to more than double its dividend, Reuters reported.
Harmony’s headline earnings per share, a key profit measure, rose to 14.31 rand ($0.8827) for the six months to December 31, up from 12.70 rand previously.
The country’s largest gold producer declared an interim dividend of 5.30 rand per share, up from 2.27 rand, totaling a record 3.38 billion rand.
Gold prices jumped roughly 60% in 2025 due to geopolitical and economic uncertainty, expectations of U.S. interest rate cuts, and increased central bank buying amid global de-dollarisation. Prices have continued climbing in 2026, reaching nearly $5,600 an ounce by the end of January.
Gold production fell 9% to 724,099 ounces, affected by earthquake disruptions at Hidden Valley in Papua New Guinea and a sodium cyanide shortage in South Africa during the second quarter.
Don’t Miss This:
South Africa’s Harmony Gold To Invest Up To $1.75 Billion In Australian Copper Project
For copper, Harmony expects output of 17,500 to 18,500 metric tons from its newly acquired CSA mine in Australia for the current financial year ending in June.
CEO Beyers Nel said the lower annualised production of about 28,000 tons, versus the mine’s historical 40,000 tons, was due mainly to safety stoppages and shaft rehabilitation.
Harmony acquired the CSA mine in October 2025, adding to its copper portfolio alongside the Eva copper project in Australia and the Wafi-Golpu project in Papua New Guinea, jointly owned with Newmont (NEM.N).
The company aims to reach 100,000 metric tons of annual copper production within three years. Nel highlighted copper’s importance, noting it is “critical to electric vehicles and power grid infrastructure,” and the company hopes to benefit from growing demand amid the global shift to cleaner energy.
Don’t Miss This:
South Africa’s Harmony Gold Says Newly Acquired Australian Copper Mine Needs Two-Year Revamp
Image Credit: Seeking Alpha
