Sector movers: BHP and Hochschild give miners a boost

17th Jul 2013 15:22

Rising metals prices and well-received production updates from BHP Billiton and Hochschild Mining were boosting mining stocks on Wednesday.BHP Billiton, the largest resources company in the world, pleased the market with its output report for the year ended June 30th, saying that it saw a strong period of production with its two major assets - Western Australia Iron Ore and Escondida - exceeding guidance. Meanwhile, annual records were achieved across seven operations and five commodity classes.The firm's petroleum division was the only unit to miss forecasts with volumes coming in below expectations, according to analyst Peter Mallin-Jones from Canaccord Genuity. He said: "Copper and iron ore saw strong beats in the quarter relative to our expectations and given the relative profitability and earnings before interest and tax contributions from each of those units we view the statement positively."The stock was up 2.9% at 1,884.5p by 15:47 on Wednesday afternoon.Precious metals group Hochschild Mining was the highest riser on the FTSE 350, with shares jumping 7.8% to 146.7p, after the company said it remains on track to hit its full-year production targets. Hochschild also said that its "cashflow optimisation programme" had been extended to deliver further material cost savings, the impact of which will begin to be seen in the second half. The stock was also given a lift by Westhouse Securities which upgraded its rating from 'sell' to 'neutral'.Metals prices were heading higher today with gold futures for December delivery up 0.31% at $1,294.40 an ounce and silver contracts (September) 0.53% higher at $20.04 an ounce.Heavyweight mining peers Glencore Xstrata, Anglo American, Vedanta and Rio Tinto were also performing well with the latter extending gains made yesterday after reporting record iron ore production in its first half, as it was able to work through equipment issues and unseasonal wet weather.Top performing sectors so far todayIndustrial Metals & Mining 1,245.07 +2.87%Mining 15,642.84 +2.71%Health Care Equipment & Services 4,395.73 +1.33%Electronic & Electrical Equipment 3,847.88 +1.23%Food & Drug Retailers 4,600.29 +1.12%Bottom performing sectors so far todayReal Estate Investment Trusts 2,478.61 -0.95%Technology Hardware & Equipment 1,069.83 -0.84%Food Producers & Processors 7,487.83 -0.82%Chemicals 9,739.25 -0.81%Fixed Line Telecommunications 3,833.40 -0.72%BC