Anglo American: Copper division ‘running well’

Copper operations were running “exceptionally well”, opening the door to exceeding output forecasts, Anglo American said as it seeks to boost operations after project write-downs and lower profits. The producer had a “very good” first quarter in base metals, Anglo’s chief executive for copper, Hennie Faul, said in Santiago on Monday. Anglo was keeping its 2014 copper output forecast of 700 000 to 720 000 tons as operations might suffer from potential setbacks, including a worse-than-expected winter in Chile and lower ore grades, he said. “There is a possibility that we could be producing more but we feel it’s reckless to guide the market now to more when we are facing headwinds,” Faul, said. – Bloomberg