JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The share price of JSE-listed copper producer Palabora Mining dropped sharply on Friday morning, after the company warned that full-year headline earnings could fall by as much as 60%.

Palabora, a Rio Tinto subsidiary, advised shareholders that headline earnings for the year ended December 2009 were likely to be between R283-million and R292-million, compared with the R729-million recorded in the previous financial year.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was expected to be around R1,1-billion, compared with the R1,3-billion recorded in the previous period, while basic earnings between were expected to be between R278-million and R287-million, compared with R720-milliion recorded at the end of 2008.

Palabora’s share price fell by more than 9% on the JSE to R96,20 a share. By 13:00, the company’s traded at R100 a share.

Palabora would release its financial results on February 9.

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