Trafigura, an oil trading major said its gross profit rose by 6% to USD1.2 billion compared to USD1,173 million recorded in the first half of 2016.
The company said its gross profit margin in the half-year was 1.8 percent compared to 2.7 percent in the first six months of 2016, illustrating the current highly competitive conditions in commodities markets.
EBITDA, which the company sees as the most accurate measure of operating performance since it strips out investment gains and impairments, was 12 percent higher than the half-year 2016 at USD921.4 million.
Total volumes traded in Oil and Petroleum Products rose by 25 percent from the year-ago period to an average of 4.995 million barrels per day, while in Metals and Minerals total volume rose by 37 percent. This growth was reflected in a 53 percent increase in revenue to USD67,317 million from USD44,093 million in the first half of 2016.
Jeremy Weir, CEO of Trafigura commented: “The Group’s performance in the first half demonstrated the benefits of our diversified business model, as a fall in gross profit in our Oil and Petroleum Products trading division was more than offset by a sharp increase in gross profit from the Metals and Minerals trading division.
“We were also successful in enhancing our access to liquidity from our banks and to capital from the public markets at a time of strong demand for working capital. In addition we reduced capital expenditure and made significant progress in reducing our leverage, while continuing the ramp-up of our most important infrastructure assets,” he concluded.
