ZCCM-IH posts K438.9 million profit

BUUMBA CHIMBULU writes@SunZambianZCCM Investments Holdings Plc (ZCCM-IH) has recorded a profit of K438.9 million for the six months period ended June 30, this year.This is against the backdrop of K128 million recorded last year during the same period.Company Secretary, Chabby Chabala, attributed the improvement in profit to an increase in net finance income to K327.3 million recorded in June this year from K138.7 million posted in September 2019.Mr Chabala said the increase in finance was due to exchange gains recorded on foreign denominated assets arising from the depreciation of the Kwacha.He said this in the unaudited half year financial results for the period ended June 2020 posted on Lusaka Securities Exchange (LuSE).“The increase in the Group’s share of profit in associate companies increased from K154.8 million recorded in September 2019 to 354.7million in June 2020.“This is mainly due to the increase in the profitability of some investee companies in the mining sector such as Maamba Collieries Limited and Kansanshi Mining Plc,” Mr Chabala said.He said the group total assets increased by 40 percent to K20. 26 billion in June this year from K14.51 billion in September last year.“This is mainly attributed to increase in values of investments in associates as a result of improved performance of Kansanshi Mining Plc, Maamba Collieries Limited and exchange gains arising from translation of dollar denominated investments,” he said.Mr Chabala said copper prices were expected to increase steadily on the back of solid recovery in demand from China, the largest Copper consumer.“In addition, low copper inventories in exchange warehouses, disrupted ore supplies from the top producing region in South America due to the COVID-19 pandemic and dollar strengthening are contributing to the bullish outlook for Copper,” he said. The Sun