It was the familiar shape of Neal Froneman that took the helm at Sibanye-Stillwater’s interim results presentation last week, but what he had to say about a topic he normally favours was decidedly different. Asked for his view on mergers & acquisitions, especially in gold where the firm’s South African assets are in structural decline, Froneman tetchily replied: “We are not focused on external growth. I thought I made that clear. We are keeping it to essentials.”

Essentials for Sibanye-Stillwater are, to put it bluntly, staying in business amid a worryingly indebted balance sheet. The group reported a cash outflow of R7bn in the six months ended June, a consequence of last year’s crash in platinum group metal (PGM) and nickel prices. Net debt increased by R6.8bn to R18.7bn. Before the results, the firm’s shares were 43% lower...

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