SANTIAGO, March 3 (Reuters) - Chilean miner SQM SQMA.SN, the world's No. 2 lithium producer, notice
SANTIAGO, March 3 (Reuters) – Chilean miner SQM SQMA.SN, the world’s No. 2 lithium producer, noticed income tumble within the final quarter of 2019 and warned that early 2020 gross sales in China, a key marketplace for the battery metals utilized in electrical autos, may very well be hit by affect of the coronavirus.
The lithium large is the most recent miner to report grim 2019 outcomes as overproduction of the steel drives down costs and dents revenues.
SQM posted fourth-quarter internet earnings of $66.9 million, a 38% drop in comparison with $108.6 million in the identical interval in 2018, based on its quarterly earnings assertion. Gross income slid greater than 30% to $137.eight million.
Quarterly lithium revenues plunged 57.4%, battered by continued low costs, the corporate stated.
It added that the oversupply driving the autumn in costs might linger into 2020 and “additional affect common costs this 12 months when in comparison with 2019.”
SQM CEO Ricardo Ramos stated general lithium demand…