Johannesburg - South Africa's Merafe Resources [JSE:MRF] reported a 30% decline in first-half earnings on Tuesday after the ferrochrome producer was hit by a write-down related to a potential asset sale.
Merafe, which operates a joint venture with Glencore Xstrata, said it was also squeezed by lower prices and an illegal strike that slowed production.
Merafe took an impairment loss of R75.9m because the venture with Glencore Xstrata is considering the sale of a mine.
Merafe, South Africa's largest producer of the ingredient used to make stainless steel, said diluted headline earnings per share totaled 3.8 cents in the six months to end-June, down from 5.5 cents a year earlier.
Headline EPS, the main measure of profit in South Africa, excludes certain one-time items.
Revenue was R1.5bn, up from R1.2bn a year earlier.
Merafe said it fired 1 200 employees after the illegal strike at its eastern mining operations, adding that mining operations had recently resumed.
Merafe, which operates a joint venture with Glencore Xstrata, said it was also squeezed by lower prices and an illegal strike that slowed production.
Merafe took an impairment loss of R75.9m because the venture with Glencore Xstrata is considering the sale of a mine.
Merafe, South Africa's largest producer of the ingredient used to make stainless steel, said diluted headline earnings per share totaled 3.8 cents in the six months to end-June, down from 5.5 cents a year earlier.
Headline EPS, the main measure of profit in South Africa, excludes certain one-time items.
Revenue was R1.5bn, up from R1.2bn a year earlier.
Merafe said it fired 1 200 employees after the illegal strike at its eastern mining operations, adding that mining operations had recently resumed.