Portman's earnings soar in June qtr

Higher benchmark iron ore prices have boosted Portman Ltd's earnings over the June quarter, which have more than quadrupled to $119 million compared to the previous corresponding quarter in 2007.

The miner said the increase from the 2007 June quarter's net profit after tax of $28 million was due primarily to the higher iron ore prices, where a rise of up to 97 per cent were recently settled.

Sales revenue over the quarter increased by $115 million to $188 million however the figure was partially offset by a lower sales volume of $18.1 million and the appreciation of the Australian dollar against the US dollar of $24.8 million.

Cost of goods sold decreased $5.5 million on last year, primarily due to reduced sales volume in the quarter of $10.7 million, which was partially offset by cost escalations of $5.2 million.

For the six months to June, NPAT was $137 million, up from last year's $57 million, while sales revenue was up from $266 million to $412 million.