Falconbridge Ltd posted a jump in third-quarter earnings on Friday as the company was able to sell its nickel, copper and zinc production at higher prices than a year ago.
The world No 3 producer of nickel reported earnings of $155 million or 85 cents a share in the three months to September 30. That compared with earnings of $19 million or 10 cents a share in the same year-ago period.
The Toronto-based producer was forecast to report earnings of 83 cents in the quarter, according to analysts polled by Reuters Research.
Falconbridge chief executive Aaron Regent said the company was benefiting from its decision to focus on nickel and copper, metals which have both performed strongly in the past 18 months mostly on robust demand from China.
"The fundamentals for these metals continue to be excellent and we are well positioned to continue to benefit from higher metal prices," Regent said in a statement.
Cash generated from operations, before working capital changes, was $304 million in the third quarter compared with $144 million in the corresponding quarter in 2003.