Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. slipped 0.1% in premarket trading, after the copper and gold miner reported second-quarter profit and revenue that missed expectations, concerns over the global economy, higher U.S. interest rates and a strong U.S. dollar led to a “precipitous decline” in copper prices. Net income dropped to $840 million, or 57 cents a share, from $1.08 billion, or 73 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share of 58 cents missed the FactSet consensus of 62 cents. Revenue fell 5.8% to $5.42 billion, below the FactSet consensus of $6.13 billion. Copper production increased 17.7% to 1.075 billion of recoverable pounds, but the average realized price declined 7.1% to $4.03 per pound. Meanwhile, the company said copper demand remains “healthy” and fundamentals remain “tight,” as copper is required for clean energy technologies. Gold production grew 56.0% to 476 thousand of recoverable ounces, and the average realized price increased 1.8% to $1,827 per ounce. Freeport-McMoRan’s stock has plunged 36.4% over the past three months through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has lost 9.9%.
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