Glencore earns huge trading profits as war upends commodity markets or helps its full-year performance reach new highs
Said that the trading team made about US$3.3 billion in the first half of the year, and this year is expected to be the most glorious year in the company’s history. That underscores the fortunes commodities traders are making after the Iran war sent energy prices soaring. Judging from the results in the first half of the year, the company is already very close to the upper limit of its annual profit target range, which is US$3.5 billion. The trading business made $2.9 billion last year. At the current pace, the company is on track to beat the $6.4 billion record set in 2022. However, Glencore did not update its full-year performance guidance. The conflict in the Middle East has caused turbulence in various energy markets, and commodities trading companies have profited greatly from it. Meanwhile, everything from the AI boom to trade tariffs has pushed up metals prices. Glencore said earlier this year that it had significantly beaten its full-year target, but the extent of its trading profits was not known to the public until the company released its latest figures today. The major metals and energy trader did not disclose the exact source of the profit but will provide more details next week when it releases first-half results.