How are these ASX 50 mining stocks performing?

Highlights:

• The ASX 200 Materials index closed down 2.96% on 3 November 2022.
• The index is trading in the green today (4 November 2022).
• Recently, many ASX-listed mining stocks have released their quarterly activity reports.

The main index related to the Australian materials sector marked the sharpest fall amongst the indexes pertaining to all the significant sectors on 3 November 2022. The ASX 200 Materials index (INDEXASX:XMJ) closed 2.96% lower at 15,341.00 points. In a month, the index has lost 554.70 points. On a year-to-date (YTD) basis, it has declined by 10.33% and has marked a fall of 12.10% in the last six months. The yearly gain is 3.94%.

Today (4 November 2022), the index was up 0.80% to 15,463.80 points at 11:02 AM AEDT.

Meanwhile, the ASX 200 Australian stock market benchmark index was 0.21% down to 6,843.80 around the same time.

Talking about the Australian mining sector, many companies have released their quarterly activity reports recently. Let’s have a glance at the quarterly update of these ASX50 mining stocks, BHP Group Limited, Fortescue Metals Group, Rio Tinto Limited, South32 Limited, and Newcrest Mining Limited.

BHP Group Limited (ASX:BHP)

Australian mineral explorer, BHP Group, produces essential commodities like metallurgical coal, potash, copper, nickel, and iron ore.

According to an ASX announcement, the company delivered a reliable and safe operational performance during the first quarter of the new financial year (September 2022 quarter). The quarter included planned maintenance at Olympic Dam, BHP Mitsubishi Alliance, and Western Australia Iron Ore.

Compared to previous year, copper production increased by 9%, iron ore production by 3%, and nickel production by 16%. However, in comparison to previous quarter, copper production declined by 11%.

BHP stated that it expected macro-economic uncertainty to impact the labour market, energy costs, supply chains, and availability of materials and equipment.

BHP shares were spotted trading 0.82% higher at AU$38.298 per share at 10:44 AM AEDT. On Thursday, BHP’s shares closed 3.21% lower at AU$37.98 apiece. With this, the share price has dropped by 5.22% in one month. On a YTD basis, the share price has tumbled by 10.38%, and in the past six months, it has declined by 19.87%. The yearly rise is 5.41%, and in the past five years, it has gained 35.30%.

Fortescue Metals Group (ASX:FMG)

Fortescue, a vertically integrated resource and green energy company, is an iron ore producer which claims to ship more than 180 million tonnes of iron ore annually.

Recently, the company shared an update regarding the quarterly production. During the first quarter of the financial year 2023 (1QFY23), the iron ore shipment was 47.5 million tonnes, 4% higher than the previous period. The average revenue was US$87 per dry metric tonne.

As of 30 September 2022, the cash stood at US$3.3 billion after paying the capital expenditure of US$653 million and the final dividend of US$2.4 billion.

In FY23, the company expects iron ore shipments of 187-192 million tonnes, capital expenditure of US$2.7-US$3.1 billion (excluding FFI) and operating expenditure of US$500-US$600 million.

Fortescue’s shares were spotted trading 1.15% higher at AU$15.46 apiece at 10:45 AM AEDT. Shares closed 2.86% down to AU$15.28 per share on Thursday. Including today’s fall, Fortescue’s share price has declined by 11.21% in one month. On a YTD basis, the share has lost 23.02%, and in six months, it has decreased by 24.06%. The yearly gain is 7.76%, and in the last five years, it has surged by 214.40%.

Rio Tinto Limited (ASX:RIO)

Mining and metals company, Rio Tinto, deals in four product groups, iron ore, copper, aluminium and minerals.

During the third quarter of FY22, the company delivered a 10% rise in mined copper, a 48% increase in titanium dioxide slag, and a 1% rise in Pilbara iron ore (in comparison to previous year). Jakob Stausholm, chief executive of Rio Tinto, stated that production improved across most of the company’s sites in comparison to previous quarter, especially at those sites where the Rio Tinto Safe Production System was implemented.

Rio Tinto’s shares were spotted trading 0.46% higher at AU$90.98 per share at 10:46 AM AEDT. The share price registered a fall of 2.23% on Thursday. With this, the share price has dropped by 5.64% in one month. On a YTD basis, it has fallen by 9.16% and has marked a fall of 18.50% in the past six months. The yearly gain is 2.54%, which has increased by 24.14% in the past five years.

South32 Limited (ASX:S32)

Diversified metals and mining company, South32, is listed on the ASX, the London Stock Exchange, and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The company operates in North America, Africa, Australia, and South America.

In the September 2022 quarterly report, the company reported an 11% surge in copper-equivalent production, a 9% surge in aluminium production, and a 6% growth in manganese ore production.

In FY23, the company expects a 13% growth in copper-equivalent production.

South32’s shares were spotted trading 0.41% higher at AU$3.70 apiece at 10:47 AM AEDT. The shares closed 3.16% lower on Thursday at AU$3.68 per share. With this, in one month, the share price has declined by 1.87%. On a YTD basis, it has decreased by 9.58% and has recorded a fall of 20.69% in the last six months. The yearly gain is 4.25%, and it has increased by 9.52% in the past five years.

Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX:NCM)

Australian gold exploration, mining, and development company, Newcrest, claims that it is one of the largest gold mining companies worldwide.

During the September 2022 quarter, the company reported gold production of 527koz and copper production of 32kt. The company expects increased copper and gold production during the December 2022 quarter.

Newcrest’s CEO and managing director, Sandeep Biswas, highlighted that the group’s exploration portfolio expanded during the quarter as five new emerging projects in the Great Basin Region in North America were added.

Newcrest’s shares were spotted trading 0.35% lower at AU$17.27 apiece at 10:51 AM AEDT. Its share price dropped by 3.02% to AU$17.33 per share on Thursday. With this, the shares have lost 2.15% in a month. On a YTD basis, it has fallen by 29.24%, and in the last six months, it has dropped by 33.83%. The yearly fall is around 28.39%, and it has dropped by 25.27% in the last five years.