Rio Tinto names Shell’s Katie Jackson as new copper chief
Jackson, who is the current president of National Grid Ventures, an energy group, joins Rio Tinto on September 1.
Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. (NYSE:POT) doubled its third quarter earnings, reporting 94 cents per share or $826 million compared to 38 cents per share or $343 million a year ago.
The company’s stock opened 2.3% higher at $50.65 a share.
During the first the first nine-months of 2011, the company’s earnings have doubled from $1.39 per share during the same period last year to $2.73 per share today.
The company said demand was strong from both North American and international customers.
The company is forecasting even more production next year.
“We expect global shipments to be approximately 57 million tonnes for 2011 and reach a record 58-60 million tonnes in 2012,” said the company in a statement.
While PotashCorp sees more production from competitors coming online, demand and supply conditions will remain tight and potash prices will remain elevated.
The company’s offshore investments—Arab Potash Company Ltd. (APC) in Jordan, Israel Chemicals Ltd. (ICL) in Israel and Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (SQM) in Chile—contributed $109 million to earnings for the quarter, compared to $76 million a year ago.
Despite some rocky news in the commodity sector, the company is bullish.
“While fertilizer demand is undeniably connected to the profitability of farmers around the world, the reality is that farmers’ planting and fertility decisions are not based on day-to-day movements in these markets but on the basics of soil science and the expectation of profit at the end of their growing season. With low global grain inventories continuing to support historically high crop prices, the prospect of strong farmer returns remains. We believe this will serve as a powerful motivator to improve fertilizer applications and, ultimately, food production.”
