Major mining assets change hands after commodity rout (Reuters/Daily Mail – July 25, 2016)

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Large mining companies are selling off prized assets after the prolonged global commodities markets rout left some with high levels of debt.

Anglo American, Glencore and Freeport have been at the forefront of those companies trying to sell, but BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto have also been seeking to rationalise their assets while signalling an interest in acquisitions.

Slower growth in China triggered the slide in the prices of raw materials, and Chinese companies are the main potential buyers of assets on sale, aiming to secure natural resources as the economy expands. China Molybdenum Co, for example, snapped up two assets in less than a fortnight.

Share prices in mining firms have recovered as investors take a cautious view that commodity prices have bottomed out.

Britain’s vote in June to leave the European Union has also boosted the shares of London-based mining firms whose earnings are mostly overseas and denominated in the U.S. dollar, now stronger relative to sterling.

Following is a list of the main mining companies, their debt as a ratio to core earnings (EBITDA, or earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation), some of the main sales so far and what assets are on offer:

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