Kumba Iron Ore withheld its full-year dividend despite a strong set of financial results on the back of higher iron ore prices and improved cost controls, citing the uncertain nature of the market for the ingredient used to make steel. Kumba, which is 69.7% owned by Anglo American, said on Tuesday its cash flows increased by a quarter to R17.2bn in the year to end-December compared with the previous year. Kumba paid income tax of R3.4bn for the year compared with R600m before. It also has a tax settlement of R2.5bn to pay the South African Revenue Service (SARS) to settle a tax dispute dating back to 2006. Headline earnings per share (HEPS) increased by 131% to R27.30. Kumba reported a profit of R11bn for the year compared with R627m the year before. Anglo American has said it wanted to divest from Kumba, SA’s largest iron ore producer, which notched up R41bn in revenue for the year, a 13% increase as the iron ore price averaged $64/tonne compared with $53/tonne the year before.
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