LONDON, March 20, 2026, 18:51 GMT
Anglo American finished Friday off 3.04% at 2,867 pence, lagging behind a soft FTSE 100 as traders pared back on cyclical names. The UK’s main index dropped 1.4%, marking its third consecutive weekly decline.
Why does it matter? Anglo is pushing shareholders to support a copper-centric pivot, right as rising oil prices and fresh worries about interest rates add to the headaches for mining stocks. Back in February, Anglo reported that a merger with Teck Resources would tilt investor exposure to copper beyond 70%. That’s the metal behind everything from EVs and power grids to data centers. Approvals for the deal, though, are still a work in progress.
Ana Sanches, who heads Anglo’s Brazil operations, told reporters Wednesday the miner looks for final sign-off on the Teck deal “around the year-end.” Previously, the company put the remaining regulatory hurdles in China and South Korea on a timeline stretching from September through March. Reuters
Anglo is also tapping debt markets for funding, pricing $2.3 billion in senior unsecured notes across three maturities: 2031, 2033, and 2036. The proceeds are set aside for general corporate purposes. Settlement was scheduled for March 19, with a listing planned on the London Stock Exchange’s International Securities Market.
It’s been a choppy stretch. Gold slid 1.8% Friday, silver off 4.6%, as a stronger dollar and concerns over Middle East escalation hit sentiment. “Especially wobbly,” is how independent metals trader Tai Wong summed up the action, with this week’s pullback fueled by fresh rate-hike anxiety. On Thursday, AJ Bell’s Dan Coatsworth flagged miners’ exposure — inflation worries are muddying their earnings picture. Reuters
Signals from rivals aren’t clear-cut. BHP tapped Brandon Craig as chief executive this week, with the miner stressing any deal has to be “incredibly compelling.” Over at Rio Tinto, the latest annuals show copper gains making up for iron ore weakness. So, Anglo faces a tricky spot: long-term copper is tempting, but the immediate market is far less patient. Reuters
Anglo remains deep in the middle of its sweeping overhaul. Back in February, it reported a $3.7 billion loss, weighed down by a $2.3 billion De Beers write-down. The board slashed the total dividend to $0.23 a share from $0.64. Deals to offload its steelmaking coal business and nickel unit, plus plans to spin off De Beers, are all still in motion.
The risk is clear enough. Anglo’s recent production update slashed its 2026 copper forecast to 700,000-760,000 tonnes—down from the previous 760,000-820,000. Diamond production didn’t fare better, dropping 12% last year to 21.7 million carats. Should approvals for Teck drag out beyond what management projects, investors are staring at a company wrestling with weaker copper flows and a sluggish diamond market.
