Fortescue reports rise in shipments but flags labour shortage

Reuters | January 24, 2022 | 3:03 pm Top Companies Australia Iron Ore

Fortescue's green energy group CFO to step down for health reasons

(Image courtesy of Fortescue Metals Group.)

Australian iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group on Tuesday posted a 2% rise in second-quarter shipments, but flagged pressures from strong demand for labour and resources, as well as supply chain constraints due to the pandemic.

The world’s fourth-largest iron ore miner shipped 47.5 million tonnes (mt) of the steel-making commodity in the December quarter, compared with 46.4 mt a year earlier.

Bigger rivals BHP Group and Rio Tinto have also warned of disruptions from coronavirus-induced labour shortages as Australia faces a surge of Omicron cases.

The slightly upbeat production result came against the backdrop of stricter environmental and production controls as well as a property sector crisis in China, which have weighed on forecast for steel demand.

Fortescue, run by billionaire Andrew Forrest, left its annual shipments forecast unchanged.

(By Indranil Sarkar; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi and Sriraj Kalluvila)