Glencore lifts asset sales target as 2015 profit falls 32 percent

But a string of impairments saw it swing to a $US4.9 billion net loss for the year on Tuesday, from a $US2.3 billion net profit the year earlier.

The miner-cum-trader’s results Tuesday revealed no problems.

The Group reported 2015 adjusted EBITDA of $8.7 billion, down 32% on 2014, due to substantially weaker commodity prices, partially offset by cost efficiencies and favourable producer country currencies.

“Our diversified portfolio, based around a core of Tier 1 assets, combined with our highly resilient marketing business, underpins our ability to continue to be comfortably cash generative at current and even lower commodity prices”. Analyst consensus was for a $US1.17 billion underlying profit.

In processing, volumes were boosted by the purchases of oilseed crushing plants in Canada and Germany, and 50% of a Brazilian grain handling and port facility, deals which accounted for the great majority of Glencore’s $301m spending previous year on acquisitions.

But without a tailwind from commodities prices, the most likely direction for Glencore’s stock this year appears to be sideways.

Glencore slashed its capital expenditure from $5 billion to $3.8 billion for 2016 to hit its debt repayment target.

Glencore – which raised to a further $4bn-5bn its target for disposals this year, on top of the $1.6bn already achieved – set a mid-December deadline for bids for a stake in the agriculture business, which it had mulled floating separately too.

In the longer term, that will lead net debt to be below USD15.00 billion by the end of 2017, the company said.

Glencore had in September announced drastic moves to trim its then towering $30-billion debt, including suspending production at a number of mines and selling off assets.

Glencore’s balance sheet remains strong, it said, with USD15.20 billion of available liquidity at the end of 2015.