Commodity company shares are under pressure after the world’s biggest miner warned than oversupply and low prices were likely to carry on for a prolonged period.
BHP Billiton chief executive Andrew Mackenzie told a meeting of senior executives and politicians in Australia (as reported by Reuters):
Incremental supply, induced during periods of higher prices, will take longer to absorb and this means over-supply may persist for some time.
BHP and rival Rio Tinto have been criticised for expanding their iron ore production despite a slump in the metal’s price.
BHP shares are currently 26p lower at 1357.5p, Rio is down 35p at £28.67 while Anglo American has lost 22p to 1026.5p.
With gold and silver prices slipping, precious metals miners are also on the slide. Randgold Resources has lost 20p to £47.60 and Fresnillo has fallen 15.5p to 741.5p.
