Newmont's earnings fall on weak gold price<\/p>\n
DENVER (Reuters): Newmont Mining Corp., North America's
\nbiggest gold mining company, said on Wednesday its fourth-quarter
\nearnings fell as a stagnant gold price and rising energy costs
\nhit the company hard.<\/p>\n
Newmont, which has operations in the United States, Mexico,
\nPeru, Russia and Indonesia, reported earnings of $19.7 million,
\nor 12 cents a share, on revenues of $476.8 million.<\/p>\n
In the year-earlier quarter it reported a profit of $46.8
\nmillion, or 28 cents a share, on revenues of $430.5 million.<\/p>\n
Excluding a $21.3-million asset write-off and other unusual or
\nnon-cash items related to the Mesquite mine in California and a
\nMexican joint venture exploration project, fourth-quarter
\noperating earnings were 21 cents per share.<\/p>\n
The Wall Street consensus forecast for operating earnings was
\n19 cents a share, according to First Call\/Thomson Financial.<\/p>\n
Newmont said total gold production for the fourth quarter rose
\n31 percent to a record 1.6 million equity ounces, giving the
\ncompany a record gold production level of 4.94 million ounces of
\ngold for the year.<\/p>\n
The company's realized gold price fell $21 an ounce during the
\nquarter to $274 an ounce, while total cash costs declined $1 to
\n$163 an ounce.<\/p>\n
By the close, spot gold, which trades in a 52-week range of
\n$252.80 and $326.25 an ounce, ended in London at $262.90\/$263.50,
\nfrom Tuesday's New York close at $263.45\/$263.95.<\/p>\n
Newmont, like many of its gold mining rivals, said it was
\ncutting the average gold price it uses to calculate proven and
\nprobable reserves to $300 an ounce from $325.<\/p>\n
Newmont's move to a lower average gold price follows similar
\nmoves by rival gold miners Placer Dome Inc. and Barrick Gold
\nCorp., which both reduced their long-term gold assumption to $300
\nan ounce from $325 in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
The gold miner said earnings and cash flow in 2001 will be
\naffected by several factors, including lower combined production
\nand higher cash costs.<\/p>\n
Overall it expects North American production to decline by
\napproximately 400,000 ounces with the depletion of the surface
\nmining at a mine in Nevada and further production reductions at
\nits Mesquite mine in California.<\/p>",
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