Overview

• Underlying earnings for the six months to June 30 fell to $4.81 billion, missing a $5.05 billion Visible Alpha consensus and marking the weakest half-year result in five years
• Iron ore revenue was weighed down by excess supply from Australia, Brazil and South Africa and a slowdown in China’s steel production
• The interim dividend was cut to $1.48 per share from $1.77 as returns came under pressure
• Stronger copper and aluminium earnings partly offset iron ore losses, while US tariffs added $321 million in gross costs over the period
• Morgan Stanley forecasts iron ore prices could rebound to around $100 per metric ton by year-end as Chinese steelmakers rebuild inventories