Table of Contents
Key Points
- Revenue held at $117.4 billion in H1 2025 despite coal price weakness and lower copper production volumes.
- Industrial EBITDA fell 17% to $3.8 billion, while net loss widened to $655 million from $233 million.
- Glencore announced a $1 billion buyback, targeting $3.2 billion in shareholder returns for 2025.
Glencore Plc, the Swiss commodity trading and mining giant led by South African executive Gary Nagle, reported first-half revenue of $117.4 billion for 2025, little changed from $117.1 billion a year earlier. The company managed to hold its ground despite softer coal prices and reduced copper output, showing it can weather the pressures of a tougher global economy.
Coal slump, copper woes drag Glencore’s H1 amid capital moves
Glencore’s H1 2025 revenue inched up 0.26 percent to $117.4 billion, as strong marketing and metals trading offset weaker industrial output. Industrial Adjusted EBITDA dropped 17 percent to $3.8 billion, hit by falling coal prices and copper mine disruptions at Collahuasi, Antamina, Antapaccay and KCC.
Marketing Adjusted EBIT fell 8 percent to $1.4 billion, pushing overall Adjusted EBITDA down 14 percent to $5.4 billion. Net loss widened to $655 million from $233 million, with funds from operations down 22 percent to $3.2 billion.
The group spent $3.2 billion on capex, returned $1.8 billion to shareholders, and boosted non-readily marketable inventory by $1.1 billion via commodity pre-pay and lending deals. Net debt rose to $14.5 billion from $11.2 billion, equal to 1.08× Adjusted EBITDA—or 1× including $900 million from July’s Viterra sale.
Positioning for growth and cost efficiency
The company completed a review of its industrial portfolio, identifying about $1 billion in recurring cost savings—more than half targeted for delivery by the end of 2025 and the remainder by 2026. Nagle reaffirmed full-year production guidance, with a stronger second half expected as copper output recovers and cost savings start to flow through.
Glencore announced an additional share buyback of up to $1 billion, to be completed by February 2026, lifting total announced 2025 shareholder returns to $3.2 billion. The group also raised its long-term marketing Adjusted EBIT guidance range to $2.3–$3.5 billion, up from about $2.5 billion, excluding Viterra.
Gary Nagle, Glencore’s CEO, said the company remains well-placed to capitalise on growing demand for key commodities, highlighting the flexibility of its marketing and industrial arms to respond to global needs despite geopolitical and trade uncertainties.
Ivan Glasenberg’s legacy and Glencore’s next phase
Glencore, founded in the 1970s as a trading firm, has grown into a global resource giant with operations in over 35 countries and 150,000 employees, supplying critical metals such as nickel, copper, and cobalt for the clean-energy transition.
Former CEO Ivan Glasenberg—Glencore’s largest individual shareholder with a 10.2 percent stake worth R83.45 billion ($4.7 billion)—steered the company through its 2011 IPO, the $90 billion Xstrata merger in 2013, and volatile commodity cycles, delivering a 450 percent shareholder return from 2002 to 2022.
Today, Glencore’s assets total $132.18 billion, up 1 percent year-on-year, while equity slipped 8 percent to $32.79 billion. The company expects around $4 billion in annualized free cash flow at current prices, driven by higher H2 copper output, cost savings, and market recovery. It targets $3.2 billion in shareholder payouts, including a $1 billion buyback in February 2026.
