Mining holding company Assore said that its increased earnings were anticipated to increase attributable earnings per share for the six months ended December 31st 2011 to between ZAR 18.55 and ZAR 20.50 per share from ZAR 11.64 per share for the six months ended December 31st 2010 and headline earnings per share to between ZAR 18.01 and ZAR 19.91 per share from ZAR 11.63 per share for the six months ended December 31st 2010.

The group added that the European sovereign debt crisis continued to have a negative impact on the demand for its commodities.

The company said that "Except for iron ore, prices for the group's commodities were lower in the first half of the current financial year, in comparison to those of the same period in the previous financial year."

The impact of these lower prices was mostly offset by increased sales volumes and a weaker rand/US dollar exchange rate in the current financial year.

The company said that trading conditions in the iron ore market were favourable and driven mostly by continued Chinese demand. It said that "Average prices were higher, albeit more volatile, in the current financial year, in comparison to those experienced in the first half of the previous financial year."

As part of the first phase of the group's third empowerment transaction, 11.8% of Assore's issued ordinary shares were acquired by a special-purpose vehicle on August 19, 2011, and were recognised as treasury shares in terms of International Financial Reporting Standards.

(Sourced from www.businesslive.co.za)