LONDON, March 20, 2026, 18:51 GMT
Anglo American shares closed down 3.04% at 2,867 pence on Friday, underperforming a weak FTSE 100 as investors kept cutting exposure to economically sensitive stocks. Britain’s benchmark index fell 1.4% and sealed a third straight weekly loss. 1
The move matters because Anglo is asking shareholders to back a more copper-focused future just as higher oil prices and renewed rate fears make miners harder to own. In its February results, Anglo said its planned merger with Teck Resources would leave investors with more than 70% exposure to copper, the metal used in power grids, electric vehicles and data centres, and that it was still securing the approvals needed to close the deal. 2
Ana Sanches, Anglo’s Brazil CEO, said on Wednesday the miner expects final regulatory approval for the Teck deal “around the year-end.” The company had earlier said the remaining clearances from China and South Korea were expected between September and March. 3
Anglo also moved to shore up funding. It priced $2.3 billion of senior notes — a type of unsecured corporate debt — in three tranches maturing in 2031, 2033 and 2036, with the cash earmarked for general corporate purposes. The bonds were due to settle on March 19 and list on the London Stock Exchange’s International Securities Market. 4
The immediate backdrop is rough. Gold fell 1.8% on Friday and silver dropped 4.6% as the dollar firmed and markets fretted about a wider Middle East war; Tai Wong, an independent metals trader, said metals were “especially wobbly” after this week’s drawdown on rate-hike fears. A day earlier, AJ Bell’s Dan Coatsworth said miners were vulnerable because inflation worries were clouding the earnings outlook. 5
Peers are sending a mixed signal. BHP this week named Brandon Craig as chief executive and said any acquisition would need to be “incredibly compelling,” while Rio Tinto’s latest annual results showed stronger copper helping offset weaker iron ore. That leaves Anglo caught between long-term appetite for copper and a much less forgiving market in the near term. 6
Anglo is still halfway through a wider break-up and rebuild. It posted a $3.7 billion loss in February after a $2.3 billion write-down on De Beers, cut its total dividend to $0.23 a share from $0.64, and said the steelmaking coal sale, agreed nickel disposal and De Beers separation were still moving ahead. 7
The risk is not hard to see. Anglo’s latest production report cut 2026 copper output guidance to 700,000-760,000 tonnes from 760,000-820,000 tonnes, and diamond output fell 12% last year to 21.7 million carats. If the Teck approvals drag past management’s timetable, investors would still be left with a miner working through lower copper output and a weak diamond market. 8
