REG-BlackRock World Mng: Half-year Report
16/08/2018 16:45
BlackRock World Mining Trust plc
LEI - LNFFPBEUZJBOSR6PW155
Half Yearly Financial Report 30 June 2018
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
as at 30 June 2018
Attributable to ordinary shareholders 30 June 2018 (unaudited) 31 December 2017 (audited) % change
Assets
Net assets (£’000) 786,619 804,647 -2.2
Net asset value per ordinary share 445.79p 456.01p -2.2
– with dividends reinvested 0.0
Ordinary share price (mid-market) 386.50p 397.75p -2.8
– with dividends reinvested -0.3
EMIX Global Mining Index – net total return* 572.17 567.79 0.8
EMIX Global Mining Index – gross total return* 606.29 599.99 1.1
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Discount to net asset value 13.3% 12.8%
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For the six months ended 30 June 2018 (unaudited) For the six months ended 30 June 2017 (unaudited) % change
Revenue
Net profit after taxation (£’000) 16,393 14,788 10.9
Revenue earnings per ordinary share 9.29p 8.38p 10.9
Dividend per ordinary share
– 1st quarterly interim 3.00p 3.00p -
– 2nd quarterly interim 3.00p 3.00p -
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Total dividends paid and payable 6.00p 6.00p -
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* The Company’s performance benchmark (the EMIX Global Mining Total
Return Index) may be calculated on either a Gross or a Net return basis. Net
return (NR) indices calculate the reinvestment of dividends net of withholding
taxes using the tax rates applicable to non-resident institutional investors,
and hence give a lower total return than indices where calculations are on a
Gross basis. As the Company is subject to the same withholding tax rates for
the countries in which it invests, the NR basis is felt to be the most
accurate, appropriate, consistent and fair comparison for the Company.
Historically the benchmark data for the Company has always been stated on a
Gross basis, and therefore for transparency both sets of benchmark data are
provided in the table above. Going forward it is the Board’s intention to
monitor the Company’s performance with reference to the NR version of the
benchmark.
CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT
MARKET OVERVIEW
The broadly flat net asset value performance over the period belies what was
in fact a relatively volatile spell, in which encouraging underlying earnings
progress in the sector was disrupted by increasingly hostile rhetoric from the
US administration on trade tariffs. Mining companies continued to focus on
balance sheet repair, with little new capital expenditure announced, and
returning excess cash to shareholders. However, whilst 2017 was a year of
unusually low volatility, rising uncertainty in the macro outlook has led to
greater dispersion of returns this year. Although the global economic growth
outlook overall remains bright, rising US interest rates and a stronger US
dollar have contributed to tightening financial conditions. Additionally, at
the end of the six month period, heightened concerns over the potential for
trade wars between the US and China overshadowed market sentiment and mining
commodities suffered as a result.
PERFORMANCE
Over the six months ended 30 June 2018, the Company’s net asset value per
share (NAV) remained unchanged and the share price decreased by 0.3% (both
calculated in sterling terms with dividends reinvested on a total return
basis). During the same period, the reference benchmark, the EMIX Global
Mining Index, increased by 0.8% on a net total return basis and by 1.1% on a
gross total return basis (with effect from 18 June 2018, all Euromoney indices
were rebranded as EMIX indices). Further information on investment performance
is given in the Investment Manager’s Report.
Since the period end and up to the close of business on 15 August 2018, the
Company’s NAV has decreased by 8.5% compared to a fall of 7.5% (on a net
return basis) in the reference benchmark (with income reinvested).
REVENUE RETURN AND DIVIDENDS
The Company’s net revenue earnings for the six month period to 30 June 2018
amounted to 9.29p per share (six months to 30 June 2017: 8.38p) an increase of
10.9%. The first quarterly dividend of 3.00p per share was paid on 29 June
2018 and, today, the Board has announced a second quarterly dividend of 3.00p
per share which will be paid on 21 September 2018 to shareholders on the
register on 24 August 2018, the ex-dividend date being 23 August 2018.
DISCOUNT
The discount of the Company’s share price to the underlying NAV per share
finished the period under review at 13.3% on a cum income basis having stood
at 12.8% at the start of the year. At the close of business on 15 August 2018,
the Company’s shares were trading at a discount of 12.5%.
The Directors recognise the importance to shareholders that the market price
of the Company’s shares in the stock market should not trade at a
significant discount to the underlying NAV and the decision as to whether to
buy back the Company’s shares is addressed regularly in Board discussions.
During the period under review, and up to the date of this report, the Company
has not repurchased any shares.
GEARING
The Company operates a flexible gearing policy which depends on prevailing
market conditions. It is not intended that gearing will exceed 25% of the net
assets of the Company and its subsidiary. The maximum gearing used during the
period was 15.9%.
UNQUOTED HOLDING – AVANCO RESOURCES
In March, OZ Minerals, an Australian based copper and gold producer, announced
an off-market takeover offer to acquire Avanco Resources, subject to a 50.1%
minimum acceptance condition. The offer was a 50/50 cash/scrip consideration
comprising A$0.085 cash and 0.009 OZ Minerals shares per Avanco share.
I am pleased to report that, prior to the period end, OZ Minerals owned more
than 90% of Avanco allowing it to acquire all of the remaining shares and on
29 June 2018 the Company received proceeds of A$20.4 million cash and 2.16
million OZ Minerals shares. We believe there is the potential for value
creation from an OZ Minerals and Avanco combination as OZ Minerals brings open
pit and underground mining experience, along with a strong balance sheet which
should help to de-risk the development of the Avanco assets.
At the end of June, following completion of the transaction, the royalty
represented 2.1% of the portfolio and the Company held a 2.2% position in OZ
Minerals. (In line with the guidelines associated with the Company’s royalty
strategy, whereby investments in individual royalties should not exceed 3% of
gross assets, the royalty and equity position have not been aggregated.)
OUTLOOK
Higher levels of uncertainty will be a key theme for the remainder of 2018.
US-China economic tensions have increased significantly and a further sharp
escalation in retaliatory tariffs globally could act as a brake on economic
expansion. The unprecedented monetary policy accommodation of recent years is
also now ending with the US Federal Reserve pushing on with normalisation and
the European Central Bank set to wind down its asset purchases by the end of
this year.
Against this, global economic data has remained healthy and valuations in the
mining sector remain competitive relative to broader equity markets. Free cash
flow in the sector is also close to the highest it has ever been and we expect
the focus on financial prudence, particularly among the largest globally
diversified miners, to continue in a generally supportive price environment.
Consequently, despite recent market volatility and the positive performance in
the sector over the past couple of years, we remain cautiously optimistic on
the outlook, as companies are better positioned to withstand commodity price
volatility.
Ian Cockerill
16 August 2018
INTERIM MANAGEMENT REPORT AND RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT
The Chairman’s Statement and the Investment Manager’s Report give details
of the important events which have occurred during the period and their impact
on the financial statements.
PRINCIPAL RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES
The principal risks faced by the Company can be divided into various areas as
follows:
*
Counterparty;
*
Investment performance;
*
Legal & Compliance;
*
Market;
*
Operational;
*
Financial;
*
Marketing; and
* Securities lending.
The Board reported on the principal risks and uncertainties faced by the
Company in the Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31
December 2017. A detailed explanation can be found in the Strategic Report on
pages 10 to 12 and note 18 on pages 68 to 82 of the Annual Report and
Financial Statements which is available on the website maintained by
BlackRock, at www.blackrock.co.uk/brwm.
In the view of the Board, there have not been any changes to the fundamental
nature of these risks since the previous report and these principal risks and
uncertainties are equally applicable to the remaining six months of the
financial year as they were to the six months under review.
GOING CONCERN
The Directors, having considered the nature and liquidity of the portfolio,
the Company’s investment objective and the Company’s projected income and
expenditure, are satisfied that the Company has adequate resources to continue
in operational existence for the foreseeable future and is financially sound.
For this reason, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing
the financial statements. The Company has a portfolio of investments which are
predominantly readily realisable and is able to meet all of its liabilities
from its assets and income generated from these assets. Ongoing charges
(excluding finance costs, transaction costs and taxation) for the year ended
31 December 2017 were approximately 1.00% of net assets.
RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURE AND TRANSACTIONS WITH THE AIFM AND INVESTMENT MANAGER
BlackRock Fund Managers Limited (BFM) was appointed as the Company’s
Alternative Investment Fund Manager (AIFM) with effect from 2 July 2014. BFM
has (with the Company’s consent) delegated certain portfolio and risk
management services, and other ancillary services, to BlackRock Investment
Management (UK) Limited (BIM (UK)). Both BFM and BIM (UK) are regarded as
related parties under the Listing Rules. Details of the management and
marketing fees payable are set out in notes 4 and 5 respectively and note 11.
The related party transactions with the Directors are set out in note 12.
DIRECTORS’ RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT
The Disclosure and Transparency Rules (DTR) of the UK Listing Authority
require the Directors to confirm their responsibilities in relation to the
preparation and publication of the Interim Management Report and Financial
Statements.
The Directors confirm to the best of their knowledge that:
*
the condensed set of financial statements contained within the half yearly
financial report has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting
Standard 34 ‘Interim Financial Reporting’; and
* the Interim Management Report, together with the Chairman’s Statement and
Investment Manager’s Report, include a fair review of the information
required by 4.2.7R and 4.2.8R of the FCA’s Disclosure and Transparency
Rules.
This half yearly financial report has been reviewed by the Company’s
auditors and their report forms part of this announcement.
The half yearly financial report was approved by the Board on 16 August 2018
and the above responsibility statement was signed on its behalf by the
Chairman.
Ian Cockerill
For and on behalf of the Board
16 August 2018
INVESTMENT MANAGER’S REPORT
The first half of 2018 has in many ways resembled the beginning of last year
with a strong start followed swiftly by gains being eroded and then recovering
to leave the sector, as measured by the benchmark in sterling terms on a net
total return basis, up 0.8%. However, unlike last year when gains were
harvested by investors, this year, despite the strong fundamentals, it seems
as though investor patience has been tested by constant threats of tariffs
that could derail expectations of synchronous global growth.
Despite being frustrated by the sudden pick-up in equity volatility during the
period we remained true to our view that company fundamentals outweigh the
near term risks. This has kept the portfolio concentrated around the themes of
value, growth, resource replenishment and de-leveraging. It remains our hope
that generalist investors eventually recognise the abundance of value
available in the sector and this triggers a rotation of capital towards the
opportunity.
Over the period the net asset value per share (NAV) of the Company’s return
was flat versus 0.8% in the reference benchmark. It is pleasing to note the
strong sector returns over the last twelve months with the Company up by 24.4%
versus the reference benchmark up by 22.3% (all returns in sterling terms on a
net total return basis).
LONG JOURNEY
It seems like only yesterday that the sector was on its knees. Investors were
panicking at the prospect of companies going bust and they rushed for the exit
during the second half of 2015, only to mark a multi-year low in January 2016.
The subsequent rapid recovery in fortunes during the last two years has left
the sector trading on extremely low multiples relative to the past as the
memories of the last bear market remain fresh in people’s minds. It is clear
that, despite the current low valuations, shareholders are reluctant to
reinvest for fear of seeing their wealth damaged by a repeat of the price
falls seen during 2011 through to 2016. As with all long journeys, it will
take time for trust to be earned and confidence to morph into optimism and in
turn a rotation of capital back into mining equities.
At the start of the year there was widespread acceptance of the prospect of
synchronous growth across the world. GDP growth rates were being upgraded and
it looked as though commodity demand was going to soar. When combined with the
lack of supply growth due to the long period of underinvestment by the mining
companies from 2012 through to today, the prospect of a commodity price bull
market was intoxicating. Share prices continued their upwards moves in January
on the back of rising earnings and expectations of increased dividends.
Despite companies delivering on the latter, expectations of growth were soon
dampened as President Trump unsettled markets with his ‘Tweets’ on trade
tariffs.
For the mining companies it was pretty much business as usual. The agenda of
the last few years was followed as companies paid down debt, sold non-core
assets and refrained from reinvesting just for growth in volume. Whilst this
is paving the way to a re-rating, for the time being investor enthusiasm for
exposure is dulled by the prospect of trade wars impacting global growth.
While frustrating, this has allowed the Company to build an ever greater
exposure to both high quality companies trading on deep discounts to
historical multiples and other themes that are core to the portfolio’s
overall strategy.
As can be seen in the table below, the end of the period saw a sudden sell-off
in commodity prices as trade fears escalated. For example, the price of copper
having averaged 314USc/lb during the first half of 2018, some 20% higher than
the average price in the first half of 2017, finished the period only just
above 300USc/lb and at the time of writing had fallen by a further 11.7% to a
level of 265USc/lb. This trend seems to have swept across the base metal suite
with all prices showing sudden drops in July. In contrast, bulk prices,
especially those in coal, remain elevated as tightness in physical markets has
kept prices well supported. Precious metals were generally weaker especially
in platinum which is now down over 50% from its high seen back in 2013.
Commodity Price 30 June 2018 % change YTD in 1H 2018 % change average price 1H2018 vs 1H2017
WTI (Cushing) US$/barrel 74.1 22.6% 30.9%
Nickel US$/lb 6.7 16.7% 42.2%
Iron Ore (China 62% fines) US$/t 61.0 0.0% -17.9%
Tin US$/lb 9.0 -1.3% 5.3%
Lead US$/lb 1.1 -3.2% 10.6%
Gold US$/oz 1,251.1 -4.0% 6.4%
Aluminium US$/lb 1.0 -4.5% 17.6%
Uranium US$/lb 22.6 -5.1% -2.5%
Silver US$/oz 16.2 -5.1% -3.9%
Copper US$/lb 3.0 -8.1% 20.4%
Platinum US$/oz 851.0 -8.2% -1.9%
Met Coal US$/t 211.0 -8.7% 17.4%
Thermal Coal (Newcastle) US$/t 113.9 -12.1% 27.4%
Zinc US$/lb 1.3 -12.9% 21.6%
Lithium (Battery Grade China) 16,261.0 -23.2% 20.3%
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Source: Datastream.
In recent years we have emphasised the underlying themes that the Company
invests in, with portfolio returns largely driven by those themes as opposed
to just commodity beta. These themes revolve around deleveraging, resource
replenishment, capital discipline, asset quality and growth. Investment themes
will naturally evolve over time and during the last 12 months we have been
increasingly focused on a new theme, China supply-side reform and increasing
environmental standards in the country. This has impacted commodity prices in
different ways from both demand, supply and quality issues.
DELEVERAGING AND CAPITAL DISCIPLINE
The ‘deleveraging’ trade has dominated share price returns since the
beginning of 2016 and for most companies this has now played out. Numerous
companies including Glencore, Anglo American and Vale saw their share prices
crater through 2014-15 due to excessive debt levels in an environment of
falling commodity prices. Since 2016 the sector, in particular the more
leveraged companies, has enjoyed a material rerating of share prices, as debt
has been reduced via asset sales, lower capex and higher earnings. Over the
last three years, the Company has generated significant absolute and relative
returns from this theme via our large holdings in Vale, Glencore, Teck
Resources and First Quantum. While there are some stocks whose share prices
will still benefit from further deleveraging, the pure ‘deleveraging’
theme has now evolved into one of capital returns.
Today the sector is generating robust levels of free cash flow, with the major
mining companies operating at historically low gearing levels, seeing them
well-positioned to maintain a healthy level of returns to shareholders,
selectively grow and weather any commodity price volatility. We find it
perplexing that, despite the lower level of risk in the equities, the sector
continues to trade at a material discount to broader markets. As the market
begins to appreciate the balance sheet strength and sustainability of
dividends in the sector, we expect it will drive a rerating of mining share
prices.
Improved capital discipline has been an important driver of deleveraging
across the sector. The ‘super cycle’ saw a rapid increase in capital
spending across the sector with shareholder returns a second consideration to
volume growth. This led to oversupply in many commodities, depressed prices,
high levels of debt and in turn a massive derating of the sector. In an effort
to protect balance sheets, companies became far more focused on capital
allocation decisions and we have been particularly encouraged to see this
discipline maintained with management teams looking to maximise returns from
existing assets, drive costs lower, as well as being more transparent around
the return thresholds required to justify an investment today. This ‘value
over volume’ approach has not only improved returns, it has also helped to
tighten commodity markets and in turn improve commodity prices.
The clearest example of this has been in the iron ore market where the major
producers Vale, Rio Tinto and BHP have emphasised their value over volume
strategy when considering supply additions in the market. Despite very healthy
margins the majors have been cognisant of materially growing production given
the resultant impact on price, instead focusing on maximising returns from
their existing assets and investing to maintain current production levels.
This discipline has seen the iron ore price trade between US$60-70/t since the
beginning of 2017, despite analyst expectations of the price to fall towards
US$50/t as a result of supply growth.
GROWTH AND RESOURCE REPLENISHMENT
Capital discipline does not preclude companies from investing in growth and we
are strong supporters of companies looking to grow provided the investment
translates into growth on a value per share basis. The lack of investment in
growth has tightened commodity markets and we are now at the point where new
supply can be absorbed by rising demand.
In the Company we have invested in a number of growth orientated companies
where we see the volume growth translating into growth on a NAV/share basis. A
number of our growth focused investments in the Company are copper producers,
given the need for further supply to be added in that market. Key growth
investments include First Quantum which is targeting a 60% increase in copper
production by 2021 once Cobre Panama reaches full production; Teck Resources
which is beginning to reap the rewards of its investment in Fort Hills, an oil
sands project which commenced production at the end of 2017; along with Vale,
which has seen significant growth via the ramp-up of its high grade iron ore
mine S11D, higher premiums on the iron ore it produces, cost reductions in its
base metals business and a rapid de-gearing of its balance sheet.
Our strategy of selectively backing early-stage opportunities at the bottom of
the cycle continues to drive positive absolute and relative returns and we
continue to actively recycle capital in this area of the portfolio. Some of
the key wins for the Company year-to-date in this area include our holding in
Ero Copper which has had ongoing exploration success in Brazil; Arizona Mining
which was bid for by South32 at a 50% premium; and Altura Mining, an
Australian based lithium company which has recently commenced production and
has seen its share price more than double since our initial investment, and
which we have now exited following the strong performance.
In addition to volume growth, companies that have successfully invested in
exploration through the cycle and have sufficient asset quality to replenish
reserves and resources should be strong outperformers in the next phase of the
cycle. This is particularly prevalent amongst the gold companies given their
shorter mine lives and greater need for reinvestment. Australian based gold
producer Northern Star has continued to be a strong contributor to performance
as the company has invested substantially in exploration in recent years which
has allowed them to grow production, reserves and resource life consistently,
on a per share basis since 2010. The declining production profile for the gold
industry at large is likely to see a pick-up in M&A activity, particularly
among the mid-cap producers. The Company is well-positioned to benefit from
this trend by owning quality companies such as Agnico Eagle and Newmont which
do not have a burning need to acquire ounces, as well as companies that are
attractive takeover candidates.
CHINA SUPPLY-SIDE REFORM AND INCREASING ENVIRONMENTAL STANDARDS
A new theme that has emerged in recent years has been China’s supply-side
reform agenda and improving environmental standards in the country. This
dynamic, not well understood by the market, has served to tighten targeted
commodities far quicker than we would have originally expected. In addition,
measures to close production over winter months in an effort to combat
pollution have seen premiums for higher grade, low impurity products
materially increase. The clearest example of this is in the Chinese steel
industry, which has seen steel capacity decline from 1.3 billion tonnes in
2015 to 980 million tonnes in 2018. In turn, steel mill utilisation and
profitability has increased, with China reducing exports and preferencing
higher grade iron ore to maximise production from its reduced steel
capacity. This has seen premiums for higher grade iron ore increase, with the
discount of lower grade iron ore widening. This has been a fantastic
environment for high grade iron ore producers such as Vale (7.9% of the
portfolio), which is in the process of ramping-up production from its world
class high grade iron ore mine S11D in Brazil.
We continue to look for other opportunities to play this theme which we
believe is likely to persist for many years. China’s efforts to improve
environmental and safety standards is seeing lower quality domestic production
exit the market. This is important for commodities where China has a
significant domestic production base such as in zinc, bauxite, mineral sands
and thermal coal. The Company is well positioned to benefit from this via its
various zinc holdings including Trevali and Titan, its development bauxite
play Metro Mining, as well as its exposure to mineral sands producer Iluka and
emerging zircon producer Sheffield Resources.
BATTERY MATERIALS
The rise of the electrified vehicle (EV) has continued this year, led by huge
growth in sales of electric vehicles in China. Sales have been incentivised by
significant subsidies as they target 5 million EVs and Hybrids on the road by
2020. We have continued to see the costs of batteries decline, key to reducing
the upfront purchase costs of an electric vehicle and bringing us closer to
the tipping point for significant adoption. The raw materials that go into the
battery - cobalt, lithium and nickel - have seen strong demand and prices over
the last two years, as the market expectations for EV demand continue to
increase.
The industry has responded to higher prices for cobalt, with the development
of new technologies that reduce cobalt use. This has impacted sentiment and
during the first half of the year the cobalt price peaked at ~US$95,000/t,
finished the half at US$77,500/t and has continued to weaken after the period
end. This hurt the Company’s investments in Katanga and Cobalt 27. Cobalt 27
is a holding company with a physical position in cobalt and streaming assets,
including an agreement over cobalt from Vale’s Voisey’s Bay expansion.
There have also been concerns raised about the amount of new lithium
production expected to enter the market in coming years and the resulting
impact on lithium prices. This damaged sentiment towards lithium companies in
the period, including our holding in Albemarle, an established lithium
carbonate producer, with arguably the two lowest cost production assets in the
world, the Talison mine in Western Australia and the Salar de Atacama in
Chile. Whilst there are numerous expansion announcements and new projects
planned, some of which we have exposure to via our holdings in Nemaska and
Galaxy, we note the broader industry has seen delays in historic projects due
to the complexities of lithium mining.
UNQUOTED INVESTMENTS
AVANCO ROYALTY (2.1%)
In July 2014 the Company signed a binding royalty agreement with Avanco
Resources, a contractual royalty covering its exploration licenses within the
world-class mineral district of Carajas in Brazil. The Company made an
investment of US$12 million in return for a Net Smelter Return (net revenue
after deductions for freight, smelter and refining charges) royalty payments
comprising 2% on copper, 25% on gold and 2% on all other metals that will be
produced from their Antas North and Pedra Branca licenses. In addition, there
will be a flat 2% royalty over all metals produced from any other discoveries
within Avanco’s licence area as at the time of the agreement.
We are pleased to report that during the period, Avanco Resources was bid for
by Australian based copper and gold producer OZ Minerals for A$418 million.
The deal valued Avanco at A$0.17/sh, a 119% premium to its one month
volume-weighted-average-price, generating meaningful gains for the Company via
its equity position and points to further upside in the royalty. Subsequent to
the end of the period, OZ Minerals confirmed that its offer for Avanco closed
on 9 July 2018.
Following the transaction, the Company has a 2.2% position in OZ Minerals and
given the royalty represents less than 30% of OZ Mineral’s pro-forma
revenue, the royalty and equity position are not added together as per the
royalty guidelines. OZ Minerals is yet to update the market with specific
details around the timing and associated capital expenditure into Avanco’s
assets; however, its stated aim is to be a more than 50ktpa copper and more
than 100koz gold producer in Brazil at the bottom half of the cost curve. Once
we have further clarity around the development plan for Antas and Pedra
Branca, we will revisit the royalty valuation. We remain supportive of the
deal and see value creation from the combination with OZ Minerals bringing
their open pit and underground mining expertise, better access to capital to
develop Pedra Branca and invest in exploration. Geologically Avanco’s assets
are similar in nature to OZ Minerals’ existing assets, Prominent Hill and
Carrapateena. This transaction transforms OZ Minerals into a copper growth
stock and we expect to see a re-rating in the share price once the company
daylights the growth optionality within their portfolio.
As at the end of June 2018, the royalty was valued at £19.1 million
representing 2.1% of the portfolio. Since our initial US$12 million investment
was made and up to 31 March 2018, we have received US$7.9 million in royalty
payments with the royalty on track to achieve a less than three-year payback
on the initial investment. We continue to be impressed with the performance of
the investment and remain optimistic on further upside under OZ Minerals’
ownership. Operationally, Antas reported an improvement in production in Q1
2018 at 3,016t copper and 2,390oz gold following the mining and blasting
difficulties at the end of 2017. The country-wide truck drivers’ strike in
Brazil resulted in a brief shutdown of the Antas mine, but it is not expected
to impact costs or full year production with operations now resumed.
DERIVATIVES ACTIVITY
The Company from time-to-time enters into derivatives contracts, mostly
involving the sale of ‘puts’ and covered ‘calls’. These are taken to
revenue and are subject to strict Board guidelines which limit their exposure
to an aggregate 10% of the portfolio. In the first half of 2018, income
generated from options was £3.0 million net of contracts repurchased. Given
the ongoing positive momentum in the sector and our belief in an abundance of
value in the mining equity market, our strategy has been to write more puts
than calls during the period. Over the first half of the year, the majority of
contracts expired worthless as we were able to sell contracts at high levels
of implied volatility and at attractive strike prices. At the end of the
period the Company had 3.4% of the net assets exposed to derivatives and the
average exposure to derivatives during the period was once again less than 5%.
GEARING
At 30 June 2018 the Company had £116.8 million of net debt, with a gearing
level (calculated as borrowings less cash as a percentage of net assets) of
13.3%. The debt is held principally in US dollar rolling short-term loans and
managed against the value of the debt securities in the Company. During the
last twelve months, the higher cost of gearing combined with the reduction in
borrowing costs for companies issuing debt, has reduced the differential
available to the Company. On the back of the lower rate of return from this
strategy relative to the value available in the equities, debt is held both
against the debt portfolio and the equity investments. In addition to the
loans, the Company also makes use of a short-term sterling overdraft facility
to manage near-term liquidity.
OUTLOOK
Like last year, it is disappointing to have seen the gains made at the start
of the year given back so quickly, especially as companies are now carrying
levels of gearing well below historical measures. We remain positive on mining
equities as they continue to report high margins, low levels of cost inflation
and well above average levels of free cash flow generation. However, we are
also well aware of the risks to this outlook both from heightened trade
tensions and the impact this would have on business confidence, as well as
investor pressure on companies to invest for the sake of volume growth. It is
essential that companies remain disciplined or they run the risk of derailing
a rotation of investor capital back into the mining sector. Should share
prices be impacted by these risks, we remain ready to increase our exposure to
the sector as it is our expectation that this will be limited in scale due to
strong corporate balance sheets.
It is important that shareholders are aware that the Company continues to back
core themes such as growth, deleveraging, value and resource replenishment
ahead of pure commodity views. It is our expectation that this will allow the
Company to deliver a superior total return for its shareholders through the
cycle from a combination of capital growth and a premium yield to that
generally available from the mining sector.
Evy Hambro and Olivia Markham
BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited
16 August 2018
TEN LARGEST INVESTMENTS
as at 30 June 2018
Set out below is a brief description by the Investment Manager of the
Company’s ten largest investments
Rio Tinto: 10.7% (2017: 8.8%) is the world’s second largest mining company
by market capitalisation. It has interests over a broad range of metals and
minerals including iron ore, aluminium, copper, coal, industrial minerals,
gold and uranium. With one of the strongest balance sheets in the sector, the
company announced US$8.2 billion of cash returns to shareholders in 2017.
During the first half of 2018, the company announced asset sales of US$5
billion (pre-tax), with a further non-binding agreement announced to sell its
entire interest in Grasberg for US$3.5 billion in July 2018. Rio Tinto
continues to pursue a cash focus and value over volume strategy, where it is
targeting US$1.5 billion of productivity improvements per year from 2021. The
company is selectively investing in growth such as Amrun, a high-grade
bauxite asset in Australia, as well as an expansion at its Oyu Tolgoi copper
project in Mongolia.
BHP: 10.0% (2017: 8.4%) is the world’s largest mining company by market
capitalisation. The company is an important global player in a number of
commodities including iron ore, copper, coal and petroleum. The
underperformance of BHP over the last three years has seen the company come
under focus from a number of shareholders. In August 2017, the company
announced that it had exited its US onshore shale business, would keep capital
spending below US$8 billion over the next few years and target a net debt
range of US$10-15 billion. The company remains focused on various productivity
and incremental brownfield growth options targeting a >10% reduction in copper
equivalent unit costs over the medium-term and improving Return on Capital
Employed to ~20% by 2022. The company has completed the exit of its US Onshore
shale business, which supports the cash return potential of the business.
Glencore: 8.1% (2017: 8.7%) is a diversified miner with activities in mining,
smelting, refining, processing and marketing of metals and minerals, energy
products and agricultural products globally. In addition, the company provides
financing, logistics, marketing and purchasing services to producers and
consumers of commodities. Since mid-2015 the company has been focused on
rapidly de-gearing the balance sheet, with net debt falling from US$26 billion
(December 2015) to a target of US$10 billion, providing greater balance sheet
strength and flexibility. Going forward, the company intends to pay a base
dividend of US$1 billion from its Marketing business, plus a minimum payout of
25% of Industrial free cash flow. During the first half of 2018 the company
suffered following a series of disputes centred around its copper-cobalt
assets in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In addition, the company received
a subpoena on 2 July 2018 from the US Department of Justice relating to
compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and United States money
laundering statutes.
Vale*: 7.9% (2017: 7.3%) is a Brazilian-based diversified mining company and
the world’s largest producer of iron ore and nickel, as well as rising
outputs of copper, coal and fertilisers. Its main mining operations are in
Brazil, Canada, Australia, Indonesia and Mozambique, and the dominant earnings
and cash flow driver continues to be its Brazilian based iron ore operations.
During 2016 the company significantly de-geared through a divestment programme
and significant cash flow generation from its mining operations. In May 2017,
Vale appointed a new CEO Fabio Schvartsman with a key focus of creating a
leaner and more competitive company, with the company targeting to reduce net
debt to US$10 billion by the end of 2018. During 2017, Vale improved its
corporate governance with the shares migrating to a single class of shares and
listing on the Novo Mercado exchange in Brazil. During the first half of 2018,
Vale announced that it had sold a Cobalt Stream for US$690 million to unlock
its Voisey’s Bay mine expansion, further reinforcing the capital discipline
of the company.
First Quantum Minerals*: 7.5% (2017: 7.3%) is an integrated copper producer
whose principal operating assets are in Zambia. First Quantum is in the midst
of a significant expansion of its business, most notably the Cobre Panama mine
in Panama which remains on-track to reach commercial production in 2019.
During the course of 2016, the company took several actions to de-risk the
balance sheet, which along with the successful commissioning of the Sentinel
copper mine and Kansanshi smelter and higher copper prices, has re-rated the
stock over the last two years. By 2020 First Quantum is targeting an almost
60% increase in copper production from 2017 levels, making it one of the
strongest copper growth stocks globally. The Company holds both the equity and
the senior unsecured debt.
Teck Resources: 5.7% (2017: 5.7%) is a world leader in metallurgical coal
production, with an 8% share of the global seaborne coking coal market. The
company is also the world’s third-largest zinc concentrate producer and the
tenth-largest zinc metal refiner. Teck is a major producer of copper and also
produces gold, lead, molybdenum and various other metal products. Teck owns a
20.9% interest in the Fort Hills oil sands project, which is having a
successful ramp-up in 2018 amidst a strengthening oil market. The strong rally
in coking coal prices during 2016 and 2017, combined with asset sales, has
allowed Teck to materially strengthen its balance sheet as it looks to approve
its QB2 Project towards the end of the year.
Sociedad Minera Cerro Verde: 3.2% (2017: 3.8%) is a copper and molybdenum
operation in Peru operated by Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold which holds a
53.6% ownership in the company. In 2013, construction activities commenced on
the US$4.4 billion large-scale expansion of the asset which has resulted in
copper production more than doubling from 210kt in 2015 to 560kt in 2017. The
project is now successfully ramped and the company has now resumed dividend
payments.
Mountain Province Diamonds*: 2.8% (2017: 2.1%) is a Canadian diamond mining
company headquartered in Toronto. Mountain Province owns a 49% interest in the
Gacho Kué Diamond Mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories, a joint venture
with De Beers Canada, which is a subsidiary of Anglo American. The company
holds the marketing rights for its 49% share of diamonds.
OZ Minerals: 2.2% (2017: 1.0%) is an Australian based copper producer who
operates Prominent Hill, a copper-gold mine in South Australia and is
currently developing Carrapateena, one of Australia’s largest copper-gold
resources. OZ Minerals is a well-capitalised company with strong cash
generation, no debt and cash of A$646 million as at 31 March 2018. During the
first half of 2018, the company successfully acquired Avanco Resources for
A$418 million in a 50/50 cash/scrip deal. Along with its existing asset base,
this transaction provides OZ Minerals with a strong copper growth pipeline
with options in both Australia and Brazil.
Newcrest Mining: 2.2% (2017: 2.3%) is one of the world’s largest gold mining
companies with four operating assets in Australia, Papua New Guinea and
Indonesia. Newcrest has transformed the operating performance of the business
in recent years, with the business underpinned by a long reserve life. By 2020
Newcrest’s aspiration is to have exposure to five tier 1 orebodies with
costs in the first quartile of the cost curve.
* Includes fixed interest securities.
All percentages reflect the value of the holding as a percentage of total
investments. Percentages in brackets represent the value of the holding as at
31 December 2017. Together, the ten largest investments represent 60.3% of
total investments (31 December 2017: 58.5%).
PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS
30 June 2018
COMMODITY EXPOSURE*
BlackRock World Mining Trust plc 2018 BlackRock World Mining Trust plc 2017 (#) EMIX Global Mining Index 2018
Other 0.0 0.0 3.5
Coal 0.0 0.0 6.2
Iron Ore 0.1 0.1 1.7
Aluminium 0.3 0.3 3.5
Steel 0.4 0.0 0.0
Zinc 0.9 1.4 0.6
Silver & Diamonds 6.8 7.6 4.4
Industrial Minerals 7.2 7.0 1.5
Gold 14.0 15.4 20.8
Copper 20.7 20.3 9.0
Diversified 49.6 47.9 48.8
GEOGRAPHIC EXPOSURE*
2018
Global 62.4%
Latin America 11.2%
Australia 10.3%
Canada 6.7%
Africa (ex SA) 6.3%
Other*** 2.4%
South Africa 0.7%
2017(#)
Global 62.7%
Latin America 11.2%
Australia 10.3%
Africa (ex SA) 7.1%
Canada 5.4%
Other** 2.6%
South Africa 0.7%
* Based on the principal commodity exposure and place of operation of
each investment.
** Consists of India, Kazakhstan, Philippines, Russia, Turkey and USA.
*** Consists of Kazakhstan, Philippines, Russia, Turkey and USA.
(#) Represents exposure as at 31 December 2017.
Source: BlackRock.
INVESTMENTS
as at 30 June 2018
Main geographical exposure Market value £’000 % of investments
Diversified
Rio Tinto Global 96,612 10.7
Rio Tinto Call Option 20/07/18 £46 Global (46) –
BHP Global 90,397 10.0
Glencore Global 73,124 8.1
Vale* Global 71,140 7.9
Teck Resources Global 51,264 5.7
South32 Global 18,132 2.0
Boliden Global 14,775 1.6
Lundin Mining* Global 13,923 1.5
Lundin Mining Put Option 20/07/18 CA$7 Global (190) –
Volcan-Convertible* Peru 10,635 1.2
KAZ Minerals Kazakhstan 3,393 0.4
Sierra Metals Peru 3,208 0.3
Osisko Metals (+) Canada 1,452 0.2
-------- --------
447,819 49.6
-------- --------
Copper
First Quantum Minerals* Global 67,482 7.5
Sociedad Minera Cerro Verde Peru 28,529 3.2
OZ Minerals Australia 20,243 2.2
Avanco Royalty (#) Brazil 19,147 2.1
Nevsun Resources Eritrea 15,754 1.7
Ero Copper Brazil 10,490 1.2
Nevada Copper USA 6,737 0.7
Ivanhoe Mines DRC 6,176 0.7
Katanga Mining DRC 5,528 0.6
SolGold Ecuador 3,296 0.4
Metals X Australia 2,239 0.2
Grupo Mexico Peru 2,005 0.2
-------- --------
187,626 20.7
-------- --------
Gold
Newcrest Mining Australia 19,511 2.2
Randgold Resources Mali 18,804 2.1
Newmont Mining Global 18,571 2.0
Northern Star Resources Australia 15,823 1.7
Agnico Eagle Mines Canada 11,522 1.3
Franco-Nevada Global 11,049 1.2
Centamin Egypt 5,943 0.7
Pretium Resources Canada 5,182 0.6
B2Gold Canada 4,866 0.5
Alamos Gold Mexico 4,307 0.5
Polyus Russia 3,289 0.4
Metals Exploration Philippines 2,488 0.3
Shanta Gold Convertible* Tanzania 2,102 0.2
Eldorado Gold Global 1,506 0.2
TMAC Resources Canada 1,108 0.1
Stratex International Turkey 136 –
Carawine Resources (+) Australia 76 –
-------- --------
126,283 14.0
-------- --------
Industrial Minerals
Iluka Resources Australia 18,457 2.0
Nemaska Lithium* (+) Canada 10,827 1.2
Albemarle Global 10,717 1.2
Pilbara Minerals* Australia 8,481 0.9
Galaxy Resources Australia 4,051 0.5
Umicore Global 3,886 0.4
Sheffield Resources Australia 2,602 0.3
Cobalt 27 Capital (#) Global 1,960 0.2
Syrah Resources Mozambique 1,580 0.2
Neo Lithium Argentina 1,440 0.2
Bacanora Lithium Mexico 1,263 0.1
-------- --------
65,264 7.2
-------- --------
Silver & Diamonds
Mountain Province Diamonds* Canada 25,626 2.8
Wheaton Precious Metals Global 13,300 1.5
Fresnillo Mexico 8,033 0.9
Industrias Peñoles Mexico 6,853 0.8
Petra Diamonds* South Africa 6,740 0.7
MAG Silver Mexico 1,036 0.1
Silver Mines Australia 251 –
Cautivo Mining Peru 3 –
-------- --------
61,842 6.8
-------- --------
Zinc
Titan Mining USA 5,159 0.6
Trevali Mining Global 2,715 0.3
-------- --------
7,874 0.9
-------- --------
Steel
ArcelorMittal Global 3,324 0.4
-------- --------
3,324 0.4
-------- --------
Aluminium
Metro Mining Australia 2,420 0.3
-------- --------
2,420 0.3
-------- --------
Iron Ore
Equatorial Resources DRC 554 0.1
-------- --------
554 0.1
-------- --------
Other
Bindura Nickel Zimbabwe 119 –
-------- --------
119 –
-------- --------
Portfolio 903,125 100.0
-------- --------
Comprising:
– Investments 903,361 100.0
– Written options (236) (0.0)
-------- --------
903,125 100.0
-------- --------
* Includes fixed interest investments.
# Investments held at Directors’ valuation.
+ Includes warrant investments.
All investments are in equity shares unless otherwise stated.
The total number of investments as at 30 June 2018 (including options
classified as liabilities on the balance sheet) was 68 (31 December 2017: 70).
As at 30 June 2018 the Company held equity interests in five companies
comprising more than 3% of a company’s share capital as follows:
Metals Exploration; Osisko Metals; Stratex International; Titan Mining; and
Nevada Copper.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
for the six months ended 30 June 2018
Notes Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000
Six months ended 30.06.18 (unaudited) Six months ended 30.06.17 (unaudited) Year ended 31.12.17 (audited) Six months ended 30.06.18 (unaudited) Six months ended 30.06.17 (unaudited) Year ended 31.12.17 (audited) Six months ended 30.06.18 (unaudited) Six months ended 30.06.17 (unaudited) Year ended 31.12.17 (audited)
Income from investments held at fair value through profit or loss 3 16,257 14,484 28,017 – – – 16,257 14,484 28,017
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Other income 3 3,032 3,243 6,152 – – – 3,032 3,243 6,152
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Total revenue 19,289 17,727 34,169 – – – 19,289 17,727 34,169
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
(Loss)/profit on investments held at fair value through profit or loss – – – (12,915) (17,491) 127,963 (12,915) (17,491) 127,963
(Loss)/profit on foreign exchange – – – (1,994) 4,860 8,414 (1,994) 4,860 8,414
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Total 19,289 17,727 34,169 (14,909) (12,631) 136,377 4,380 5,096 170,546
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Expenses
Investment management fees 4 (768) (687) (1,500) (2,414) (2,171) (4,774) (3,182) (2,858) (6,274)
Other operating expenses 5 (509) (510) (979) (7) (2) (4) (516) (512) (983)
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Total operating expenses (1,277) (1,197) (2,479) (2,421) (2,173) (4,778) (3,698) (3,370) (7,257)
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Net profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before finance costs and taxation 18,012 16,530 31,690 (17,330) (14,804) 131,599 682 1,726 163,289
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Finance costs 6 (357) (229) (512) (1,066) (702) (1,535) (1,423) (931) (2,047)
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Net profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before taxation 17,655 16,301 31,178 (18,396) (15,506) 130,064 (741) 795 161,242
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Taxation (1,262) (1,513) (3,085) 915 496 706 (347) (1,017) (2,379)
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Net profit/(loss) on ordinary activities after taxation 8 16,393 14,788 28,093 (17,481) (15,010) 130,770 (1,088) (222) 158,863
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Earnings/(loss) per ordinary share (pence) 8 9.29 8.38 15.92 (9.91) (8.51) 74.11 (0.62) (0.13) 90.03
======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ========
The total column of this statement represents the Group’s Consolidated
Statement of Comprehensive Income, prepared in accordance with International
Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), as adopted by the European Union (EU).
The supplementary revenue and capital columns are both prepared under guidance
published by the Association of Investment Companies (AIC). All items in the
above statement derive from continuing operations. No operations were acquired
or discontinued during the period.
The Group does not have any other comprehensive income. The net profit/(loss)
for the period disclosed above represents the Group’s total comprehensive
income/(loss).
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY
for the six months ended 30 June 2018
Note Called up share capital £’000 Share premium account £’000 Capital redemption reserve £’000 Special reserve £’000 Capital reserves £’000 Revenue reserve £’000 Total £’000
For the six months ended 30 June 2018 (unaudited)
At 31 December 2017 9,651 127,155 22,779 114,589 496,401 34,072 804,647
Total comprehensive income:
Net (loss)/profit for the period – – – – (17,481) 16,393 (1,088)
Transactions with owners, recorded directly to equity:
Dividends paid ((a)) 7 – – – – – (16,940) (16,940)
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
At 30 June 2018 9,651 127,155 22,779 114,589 478,920 33,525 786,619
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
For the six months ended 30 June 2017 (unaudited)
At 31 December 2016 9,651 127,155 22,779 114,589 365,631 37,741 677,546
Total comprehensive income:
Net (loss)/profit for the period – – – – (15,010) 14,788 (222)
Transactions with owners, recorded directly to equity:
Dividends paid ((b)) 7 – – – – – (21,175) (21,175)
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
At 30 June 2017 9,651 127,155 22,779 114,589 350,621 31,354 656,149
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
For the year ended 31 December 2017 (audited)
At 31 December 2016 9,651 127,155 22,779 114,589 365,631 37,741 677,546
Total comprehensive income:
Net profit for the year – – – – 130,770 28,093 158,863
Transactions with owners, recorded directly to equity:
Dividends paid ((c)) 7 – – – – – (31,762) (31,762)
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
At 31 December 2017 9,651 127,155 22,779 114,589 496,401 34,072 804,647
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
(a) The final dividend for the year ended 31 December 2017 of 6.60p per share,
declared on 26 February 2018 and paid on 10 May 2018 and 1st quarterly interim
dividend for the year ending 31 December 2018 of 3.00p per share, declared on
25 April 2018 and paid on 29 June 2018.
(b) The final dividend for the year ended 31 December 2016 of 9.00p per share,
declared on 23 February 2017 and paid on 12 May 2017 and 1st quarterly interim
dividend for the year ended 31 December 2017 of 3.00p per share, declared on 4
May 2017 and paid on 30 June 2017.
(c) The final dividend in respect of the year ended 31 December 2016 of
9.00p per share, declared on 23 February 2017 and paid on 12 May 2017; 1st
interim dividend for the year ended 31 December 2017 of 3.00p per share,
declared on 4 May 2017 and paid on 30 June 2017; 2nd interim dividend for the
year ended 31 December 2017 of 3.00p per share, declared on 10 August 2017
and paid on 15 September 2017; and 3rd interim dividend for the year ended 31
December 2017 of 3.00p per share, declared on 10 November 2017 and paid on 22
December 2017.
The transaction costs relating to the acquisition and disposal of investments
amounted to £294,000 and £104,000 respectively for the period ended 30 June
2018 (six months ended 30 June 2017: £155,000 and £128,000; year ended 31
December 2017: £392,000 and £289,000).
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
As at 30 June 2018
Notes 30 June 2018 £’000 (unaudited) 30 June 2017 £’000 (unaudited) 31 December 2017 £’000 (audited)
Non current assets
Investments held at fair value through profit or loss 10 903,361 759,329 906,479
Current assets
Other receivables 2,097 1,734 2,567
Cash collateral held with brokers 678 2,013 1,983
Cash and cash equivalents 11,501 137 693
-------- -------- --------
14,276 3,884 5,243
-------- -------- --------
Total assets 917,637 763,213 911,722
-------- -------- --------
Current liabilities
Other payables (13,770) (10,816) (4,873)
Derivative financial liabilities held at fair value through profit or loss 10 (236) (522) (604)
Bank overdraft (5,905) (3,229) (12,249)
Bank loans (110,892) (92,382) (88,708)
-------- -------- --------
(130,803) (106,949) (106,434)
-------- -------- --------
Net assets less current liabilities 786,834 656,264 805,288
-------- -------- --------
Non current liabilities
Deferred tax liability (215) (115) (641)
-------- -------- --------
Net assets 786,619 656,149 804,647
-------- -------- --------
Equity attributable to equity holders
Called up share capital 9 9,651 9,651 9,651
Share premium account 127,155 127,155 127,155
Capital redemption reserve 22,779 22,779 22,779
Special reserve 114,589 114,589 114,589
Capital reserves 478,920 350,621 496,401
Revenue reserve 33,525 31,354 34,072
-------- -------- --------
Total equity 786,619 656,149 804,647
-------- -------- --------
Net asset value per ordinary share (pence) 8 445.79 371.85 456.01
======== ======== ========
CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOW STATEMENT
for the six months ended 30 June 2018
Six months ended 30 June 2018 £’000 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 £’000 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 £’000 (audited)
Operating activities
Net (loss)/profit before taxation (741) 795 161,242
Add back finance costs 1,423 931 2,047
Net loss/(profit) on investments held at fair value through profit or loss (including transaction costs) 12,915 17,491 (127,963)
Net loss/(profit) on foreign exchange 1,994 (4,860) (8,414)
Sales of investments held at fair value through profit or loss 102,315 121,786 232,049
Purchases of investments held at fair value through profit or loss (112,480) (138,773) (250,649)
Decrease in other receivables 370 3,444 2,946
Increase in other payables 1,676 1,325 2,029
Decrease/(increase) in amounts due from brokers 100 (25) (360)
Increase in amounts due to brokers 7,320 6,497 74
Net movement in cash collateral held with brokers 1,305 399 429
-------- -------- --------
Net cash inflow from operating activities before interest and taxation 16,197 9,010 13,430
-------- -------- --------
Taxation paid (558) (514) (1,215)
Taxation on investment income included within gross income (314) (492) (852)
-------- -------- --------
Net cash inflow from operating activities 15,325 8,004 11,363
-------- -------- --------
Financing activities
Drawdown of loans 20,000 11,914 11,900
Interest paid (1,423) (931) (2,047)
Dividends paid (16,940) (21,175) (31,762)
-------- -------- --------
Net cash inflow/(outflow) from financing activities 1,637 (10,192) (21,909)
-------- -------- --------
Increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 16,962 (2,188) (10,546)
-------- -------- --------
Cash and cash equivalents at start of the period (11,556) (1,256) (1,256)
Effect of foreign exchange rate changes 190 352 246
-------- -------- --------
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period 5,596 (3,092) (11,556)
-------- -------- --------
Comprised of:
Cash and cash equivalents 11,501 137 693
Bank overdraft (5,905) (3,229) (12,249)
-------- -------- --------
5,596 (3,092) (11,556)
======== ======== ========
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
for the six months ended 30 June 2018
1. PRINCIPAL ACTIVITY
The principal activity of the Company is that of an investment trust company
within the meaning of section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010.
The principal activity of the subsidiary, BlackRock World Mining Investment
Company Limited, is investment dealing.
2. BASIS OF PREPARATION
The accounting policies applied, including those arising from the adoption of
IFRS 9 and IFRS 15 on 1 January 2018, are consistent with those described in
the Group’s annual financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2017.
The half yearly financial statements for the period ended 30 June 2018 have
been prepared in accordance with the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency
Rules sourcebook of the Financial Conduct Authority and with IAS 34 Interim
Financial Reporting, as adopted by the European Union. The half yearly
financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s Annual
Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2017, which
have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting
Standards (IFRS) as adopted by the European Union.
Insofar as the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) for investment trust
companies and venture capital trusts issued by the Association of Investment
Companies (AIC), issued in November 2014 and updated in January 2017 is
compatible with IFRS, the financial statements have been prepared in
accordance with guidance set out in the SORP.
The taxation charge has been calculated by applying an estimate of the annual
effective tax rate to any profit for the period.
3. INCOME
Six months ended 30 June 2018 £’000 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 £’000 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 £’000 (audited)
Investment income:
UK listed dividends 5,940 4,438 9,071
Overseas listed dividends 5,987 6,646 10,495
Overseas listed special dividends 266 – 628
Income from contractual rights (Avanco Royalty) 1,219 940 2,438
Fixed interest 2,845 2,460 5,385
-------- -------- --------
16,257 14,484 28,017
-------- -------- --------
Other income:
Option premium income 2,963 3,229 6,093
Deposit interest 7 3 5
Underwriting commission – – 35
Stock lending income 62 11 19
-------- -------- --------
3,032 3,243 6,152
-------- -------- --------
Total income 19,289 17,727 34,169
======== ======== ========
During the period, the Group received option premium income totalling
£2,755,000 (six months ended 30 June 2017: £3,007,000; year ended 31
December 2017: £6,140,000) for writing put and covered call options for the
purposes of revenue generation. Option premiums of £2,963,000 (six months
ended 30 June 2017: £3,229,000; year ended 31 December 2017: £6,093,000)
were amortised to income. At 30 June 2018 there were 2 open positions (30
June 2017: 1; 31 December 2017: 3) with an associated liability of £236,000
(30 June 2017: £522,000; 31 December 2017: £604,000).
Dividends and interest received in cash in the six months ended 30 June 2018
amounted to £12,835,000 and £2,606,000 (six months ended 30 June 2017:
£14,061,000 and £2,790,000 and year ended 31 December 2017: £21,538,000 and
£5,964,000) respectively.
There were no special dividends recognised in capital for the six months ended
30 June 2018 (six months ended 30 June 2017: £nil; year ended 31 December
2017: £nil).
4. INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT FEE
Six months ended 30 June 2018 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 (audited)
Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000
Investment management fee 768 2,414 3,182 687 2,171 2,858 1,500 4,774 6,274
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
768 2,414 3,182 687 2,171 2,858 1,500 4,774 6,274
======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ========
The management fee (which includes all services provided by BlackRock) is 0.8%
of the Company’s net assets. However, in the event that the NAV per share
increases on a quarter-on-quarter basis, the fee will then be paid on gross
assets at the end of the quarter. During the period £2,971,000 (30 June
2017: £2,688,000; 31 December 2017: £5,707,000) of the investment management
fee was generated from net assets and £211,000 (30 June 2017: £170,000; 31
December 2017: £567,000) from the gearing effect on gross assets. The average
of the net assets under management during the period ended 30 June 2018 was
£787,211,000 (30 June 2017: £713,036,000; 31 December 2017: £727,890,000).
The fee is allocated 25% to the revenue column and 75% to the capital column
of the Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income.
5. OTHER OPERATING EXPENSES
Six months ended 30 June 2018 £’000 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 £’000 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 £’000 (audited)
Allocated to revenue:
Custody fee 68 57 115
Auditors’ remuneration:
– audit services 15 12 31
– other assurance services 6 6 6
Registrar’s fee 42 38 78
Directors’ emoluments 108 110 217
Broker fees 12 12 25
Depositary fees 44 40 82
Marketing fees 73 59 93
Bank facility fees 36 103 154
Other administration costs 105 73 178
-------- -------- --------
509 510 979
-------- -------- --------
Allocated to capital:
Custody transaction charges 7 2 4
-------- -------- --------
516 512 983
-------- -------- --------
6. FINANCE COSTS
Six months ended 30 June 2018 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 (audited)
Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000
Interest on bank loans 340 1,016 1,356 226 693 919 495 1,484 1,979
Interest on bank overdraft 17 50 67 3 9 12 17 51 68
-------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Total 357 1,066 1,423 229 702 931 512 1,535 2,047
======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ======== ========
7. DIVIDENDS
The final dividend of 6.60p per share for the year ended 31 December 2017 was
paid on 10 May 2018. The Board has declared a first quarterly interim dividend
of 3.00p per share for the quarter ended 31 March 2018, paid on 29 June 2018
to shareholders on the register on 1 June 2018. Dividends are debited directly
to reserves.
The Board has declared a second quarterly interim dividend of 3.00p per share
for the quarter ended 30 June 2018 which will be paid on 21 September 2018 to
shareholders on the register on 24 August 2018. This dividend has not been
accrued in the financial statements for the six months ended 30 June 2018 as,
under IFRS, interim dividends are not recognised until paid.
It is expected that the third quarterly interim dividend and final dividend
for the year ending 31 December 2018 will be declared on 8 November 2018 and
21 February 2019 respectively.
Dividends on equity shares paid during the period were:
Six months ended 30 June 2018 £’000 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 £’000 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 £’000 (audited)
Final dividend for the year ended 31 December 2017 of 6.60p per share (2016: 9.00p) 11,646 15,881 15,881
First quarterly interim dividend for the year ending 31 December 2018 of 3.00p per share (2017: 3.00p) 5,294 5,294 5,294
Second quarterly interim dividend for the year ended 31 December 2017 of 3.00p per share (2016: nil) – – 5,293
Third quarterly interim dividend for the year ended 31 December 2017 of 3.00p per share (2016: nil) – – 5,294
-------- -------- --------
16,940 21,175 31,762
======== ======== ========
8. CONSOLIDATED EARNINGS AND NET ASSET VALUE PER ORDINARY SHARE
Total revenue and capital returns per share are shown below and have been
calculated using the following:
Six months ended 30 June 2018 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 (audited)
Net revenue profit attributable to ordinary shareholders (£’000) 16,393 14,788 28,093
Net capital (loss)/profit attributable to ordinary shareholders (£’000) (17,481) (15,010) 130,770
-------- -------- --------
Total (loss)/profit attributable to ordinary shareholders (£’000) (1,088) (222) 158,863
-------- -------- --------
Equity shareholders’ funds (£’000) 786,619 656,149 804,647
-------- -------- --------
The weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during each period, on which the return per ordinary share was calculated was: 176,455,242 176,455,242 176,455,242
-------- -------- --------
The actual number of ordinary shares in issue (excluding treasury shares) at the period end, on which the net asset value was calculated was: 176,455,242 176,455,242 176,455,242
-------- -------- --------
Returns per share
Revenue earnings per share (pence) 9.29 8.38 15.92
Capital (loss)/earnings per share (pence) (9.91) (8.51) 74.11
-------- -------- --------
Total (loss)/earnings per share (pence) (0.62) (0.13) 90.03
-------- -------- --------
As at 30 June 2018 (unauditied) As at 30 June 2017 (unauditied) As at 31 December 2017 (audited)
Net asset value per ordinary share (pence) 445.79 371.85 456.01
-------- -------- --------
Ordinary share price (pence) 386.50 333.50 397.75
======== ======== ========
9. CALLED UP SHARE CAPITAL
Ordinary shares in issue (number) Treasury shares (number) Total shares (number) Nominal value £’000
Allotted, called up and fully paid share capital comprised:
Ordinary shares of 5 pence each:
At 31 December 2017 and 30 June 2018 176,455,242 16,556,600 193,011,842 9,651
======== ======== ======== ========
During the period to 30 June 2018, no ordinary shares were issued, purchased
or cancelled (six months ended 30 June 2017: nil; year ended 31 December 2017:
nil).
Since 30 June 2018 and up to the date of this report, no ordinary shares have
been issued or repurchased.
10. VALUATION OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
Financial assets and financial liabilities are either carried in the
Consolidated Statement of Financial Position at their fair value (investment
and derivatives) or at an amount which is a reasonable approximation of fair
value (due from brokers, dividends and interest receivable, due to brokers,
accruals, cash at bank and bank overdrafts). IFRS 13 requires the Group to
classify fair value measurements using a fair value hierarchy that reflects
the significance of inputs used in making the measurements. The valuation
techniques used by the Group are explained in the accounting policies note
2(h), as set out in the Group’s Annual Report and Financial Statements for
the year ended 31 December 2017.
Categorisation within the hierarchy has been determined on the basis of the
lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement of the
relevant asset as follows.
The fair value hierarchy has the following levels:
Level 1 – Quoted prices for an identical instrument in an active market
A financial instrument is regarded as quoted in an active market if quoted
prices are readily and regularly available from an exchange, dealer, broker,
industry group, pricing service, or regulatory agency, and those prices
represent actual and regularly occurring market transactions on an arm’s
length basis. The Group does not adjust the quoted price for these
instruments.
Level 2 – Valuation techniques using observable inputs
This category includes instruments valued using quoted prices for similar
instruments in markets that are considered less than active, or other
valuation techniques where all significant inputs are directly or indirectly
observable from market data. Valuation techniques used for non-standardised
financial instruments such as options, currency swaps and other
over-the-counter derivatives include the use of comparable recent arm’s
length transactions, reference to other instruments that are substantially the
same, discounted cash flow analysis, option pricing models and other valuation
techniques commonly used by market participants making the maximum use of
market inputs and relying as little as possible on entity specific inputs.
Level 3 – Valuation techniques using significant unobservable inputs
This category includes all instruments where the valuation technique includes
inputs not based on observable market data and these inputs could have a
significant impact on the instrument’s valuation.
This category includes instruments that are valued based on quoted prices for
similar instruments where significant entity determined adjustments or
assumptions are required to reflect differences between the instruments and
instruments for which there is no active market. The Investment Manager
considers observable data to be that market data that is readily available,
regularly distributed or updated, reliable and verifiable, not proprietary,
and provided by independent sources that are actively involved in the relevant
market.
The level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement
is categorised in its entirety is determined on the basis of the lowest level
input that is significant to the fair value measurement. If a fair value
measurement uses observable inputs that require significant adjustment based
on unobservable inputs, that measurement is a Level 3 measurement. Assessing
the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its
entirety requires judgement, considering factors specific to the asset or
liability.
Over-the-counter derivative option contracts have been classified as Level 2
investments as their valuation has been based on market observable inputs
represented by the underlying quoted securities to which these contracts
expose the Group.
There has been no change to the valuation techniques during the period under
review or as at the date of this report.
The table below sets out fair value measurements using the IFRS 13 fair value
hierarchy.
Financial assets/(liabilities) at fair value through profit or loss at 30 June 2018 (unaudited) Level 1 £’000 Level 2 £’000 Level 3 £’000 Total £’000
Assets:
Equity investments 806,595 509 – 807,104
Investment in contractual rights – – 19,147 19,147
Fixed interest securities 73,952 3,158 – 77,110
-------- -------- -------- --------
880,547 3,667 19,147 903,361
-------- -------- -------- --------
Liabilities:
Derivative financial instruments – written options – (236) – (236)
-------- -------- -------- --------
880,547 3,431 19,147 903,125
======== ======== ======== ========
Financial assets/(liabilities) at fair value through profit or loss at 30 June 2017 (unaudited) Level 1 £’000 Level 2 £’000 Level 3 £’000 Total £’000
Assets:
Equity investments 667,294 – 6,708 674,002
Investment in contractual rights – – 18,765 18,765
Fixed interest securities 66,562 – – 66,562
-------- -------- -------- --------
733,856 – 25,473 759,329
-------- -------- -------- --------
Liabilities:
Derivative financial instruments – written options – (522) – (522)
-------- -------- -------- --------
733,856 (522) 25,473 758,807
======== ======== ======== ========
Financial assets/(liabilities) at fair value through profit or loss at 31 December 2017 (audited) Level 1 £’000 Level 2 £’000 Level 3 £’000 Total £’000
Assets:
Equity investments 817,259 2,605 – 819,864
Investment in contractual rights – – 18,943 18,943
Fixed interest securities 64,991 2,681 – 67,672
-------- -------- -------- --------
882,250 5,286 18,943 906,479
-------- -------- -------- --------
Liabilities:
Derivative financial instruments – written options – (604) – (604)
-------- -------- -------- --------
882,250 4,682 18,943 905,875
======== ======== ======== ========
A reconciliation of fair value measurement in Level 3 is set out below.
Level 3 Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss Six months ended 30 June 2018 £’000 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 £’000 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 £’000 (audited)
Opening fair value 18,943 33,550 33,550
Purchases at cost – 6,708 –
Return of capital – royalty (286) (474) –
Preference shares converted to equity and transferred to Level 1 – (7,236) (13,482)
Disposals – preference shares previously in Level 3 redeemed for cash – (6,397) (6,396)
Total gains or losses included in gains/(losses) on investments in the Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income:
– assets disposed during the period – – 6,245
– assets held at the end of the period 490 (678) (974)
-------- -------- --------
Closing balance 19,147 25,473 18,943
======== ======== ========
The Level 3 investments as at 30 June 2018 in the table below relate to the
Avanco Royalty and, in accordance with IFRS 13, this investment was
categorised as Level 3. In arriving at the fair value of this investment, the
key inputs are the underlying commodity prices and illiquidity discount.
The Level 3 valuation process and techniques used by the Company are explained
in the accounting policies in notes 2(h) and 2(p) and a detailed explanation
of the techniques is also available on page 79 under ‘Valuation process and
techniques’ in the Company’s Annual Report and Financial Statements for
the year ended 31 December 2017.
Quantitative information of significant unobservable inputs – Level 3
Description Six months ended 30 June 2018 £’000 (unaudited) Six months ended 30 June 2017 £’000 (unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2017 £’000 (audited) Valuation technique Unobservable input
Kennady Diamonds – 2,649 – Discount to quoted prices Illiquidity discount
Trevali Mining – 4,059 – Discount to quoted prices Illiquidity discount
Avanco Royalty* 19,147 18,765 18,943 Discounted cash flows Discount rate – weighted average cost of capital Average gold and copper prices
Total 19,147 25,473 18,943
-------- -------- --------
* Adjusted for changes in currency movements and return of capital.
Sensitivity analysis to significant changes in unobservable inputs within
Level 3 hierarchy
The significant unobservable inputs used in the fair value measurement
categorised within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy, together with an
estimated quantitative sensitivity analysis, as at 30 June 2018 are as shown
below.
Description Input Estimated sensitivity used* Impact on fair value
Avanco Royalty Discount rate – weighted average cost of capital 1% £2.2m
Average gold and copper prices 10% £4.8m
* The sensitivity analysis refers to a percentage amount added or
deducted from the input and the effect this has on the fair value.
The sensitivity impact on fair value is calculated based on the sensitivity
estimates set out by the independent valuer in its report on the valuation of
contractual rights. Significant increases/(decreases) in estimated commodity
prices and discount rates in isolation would result in a significantly
higher/(lower) fair value measurement. Generally, a change in the assumption
made for the estimated value is accompanied by a directionally similar change
in commodity prices and discount rates.
11. TRANSACTIONS WITH THE AIFM AND THE INVESTMENT MANAGER
BlackRock Fund Managers Limited (BFM) is the Company’s Alternative
Investment Fund Manager (AIFM). BFM has (with the Company’s consent)
delegated certain portfolio and risk management services, and other ancillary
services, to BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited (BIM (UK)).
The investment management fee due to BFM for the six months ended 30 June 2018
amounted to £3,182,000 (six months ended 30 June 2017: £2,858,000; year
ended 31 December 2017: £6,274,000). At the period end £4,896,000 was
outstanding in respect of the investment management fee (six months ended 30
June 2017: £2,858,000; year ended 31 December 2017: £3,515,000).
In addition to the above services, BlackRock has provided the Company with
marketing services. The total fees paid or payable for these services for the
period ended 30 June 2018 amounted to £73,000 excluding VAT (six months
ended 30 June 2017: £37,000; year ended 31 December 2017: £93,000).
Marketing fees of £73,000 were outstanding as at 30 June 2018 (30 June 2017:
£37,000; 31 December 2017: £93,000).
12. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURE: DIRECTORS’ EMOLUMENTS
The Board consists of six non-executive Directors, all of whom are considered
to be independent of the Manager by the Board. None of the Directors has a
service contract with the Company. The Chairman receives an annual fee of
£45,000, the Chairman of the Audit & Management Engagement Committee/Senior
Independent Director receives an annual fee of £37,500 and each of the other
Directors receives an annual fee of £30,000.
As at 30 June 2018 no amounts (30 June 2017: £nil; 31 December 2017:
£16,875) were outstanding in respect of Directors’ fees.
At the period end members of the Board held ordinary shares in the Company as
set out below:
Ordinary shares
Ian Cockerill (1) 60,789
Colin Buchan (2) 29,000
David Cheyne 24,000
Russell Edey 20,000
Jane Lewis 2,429
Judith Mosely 7,400
--------
1. Chairman.
2. Chairman of the Audit & Management Engagement Committee and Senior
Independent Director.
Since the period end and up to the date of this report there have been no
changes in Directors’ holdings.
13. CONTINGENT LIABILITIES
There were no contingent liabilities at 30 June 2018 (six months ended 30 June
2017: nil; year ended 31 December 2017: nil).
14. PUBLICATION OF NON-STATUTORY ACCOUNTS
The financial information contained in this half yearly report does not
constitute statutory accounts as defined in section 435 of the Companies Act
2006. The financial information for the six months ended 30 June 2018 and 30
June 2017 has been reviewed by the Company’s auditors.
The information for the year ended 31 December 2017 has been extracted from
the latest published audited financial statements, which have been filed with
the Registrar of Companies, unless otherwise stated. The report of the
auditors on those accounts contained no qualification or statement under
sections 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.
15. ANNUAL RESULTS
The Board expects to announce the annual results for the year ending 31
December 2018, as prepared under IFRS, in February 2019.
Copies of the results announcement can be obtained from the Secretary on
020 7743 3000 or at cosec@blackrock.com. The Annual Report should be
available by the beginning of March 2019, with the Annual General Meeting
being held in May 2019.
INDEPENDENT REVIEW REPORT TO BLACKROCK WORLD MINING TRUST PLC
Report on the financial statements
OUR CONCLUSION
We have reviewed BlackRock World Mining Trust plc’s Financial Statements
(the ‘interim financial statements’) in the Half Yearly Financial Report
of BlackRock World Mining Trust plc for the six month period ended 30 June
2018. Based on our review, nothing has come to our attention that causes us to
believe that the interim financial statements are not prepared, in all
material respects, in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34,
‘Interim Financial Reporting’, as adopted by the European Union and the
Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules sourcebook of the United
Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority.
WHAT WE HAVE REVIEWED
The interim financial statements comprise:
*
the Consolidated Statement of Financial Position as at 30 June 2018;
*
the Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income for the period then ended;
*
the Consolidated Cash Flow Statement for the period then ended;
*
the Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity for the period then ended; and
* the explanatory notes to the interim financial statements.
The interim financial statements included in the Half Yearly Financial Report
have been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34,
‘Interim Financial Reporting’, as adopted by the European Union and the
Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules sourcebook of the United
Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority.
As disclosed in note 2 to the interim financial statements, the financial
reporting framework that has been applied in the preparation of the full
annual financial statements of the Group is applicable law and International
Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as adopted by the European Union.
Responsibilities for the interim financial statements and the review
OUR RESPONSIBILITIES AND THOSE OF THE DIRECTORS
The Half Yearly Financial Report, including the interim financial statements,
is the responsibility of, and has been approved by, the Directors. The
Directors are responsible for preparing the Half Yearly Financial Report in
accordance with the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules sourcebook of
the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority.
Our responsibility is to express a conclusion on the interim financial
statements in the Half Yearly Financial Report based on our review. This
report, including the conclusion, has been prepared for and only for the
Company for the purpose of complying with the Disclosure Guidance and
Transparency Rules sourcebook of the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct
Authority and for no other purpose. We do not, in giving this conclusion,
accept or assume responsibility for any other purpose or to any other person
to whom this report is shown or into whose hands it may come save where
expressly agreed by our prior consent in writing.
WHAT A REVIEW OF INTERIM FINANCIAL STATEMENTS INVOLVES
We conducted our review in accordance with International Standard on Review
Engagements (UK and Ireland) 2410, ‘Review of Interim Financial Information
Performed by the Independent Auditor of the Entity’ issued by the Auditing
Practices Board for use in the United Kingdom. A review of interim financial
information consists of making enquiries, primarily of persons responsible for
financial and accounting matters, and applying analytical and other review
procedures.
A review is substantially less in scope than an audit conducted in accordance
with International Standards on Auditing (UK) and, consequently, does not
enable us to obtain assurance that we would become aware of all significant
matters that might be identified in an audit. Accordingly, we do not express
an audit opinion.
We have read the other information contained in the Half Yearly Financial
Report and considered whether it contains any apparent misstatements or
material inconsistencies with the information in the interim financial
statements.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Chartered Accountants
London
16 August 2018
ENDS
The half yearly financial report will also be available on the BlackRock
website at blackrock.co.uk/brwm. Neither the contents of the Manager’s
website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the
Manager’s website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part
of, this announcement.
For further information, please contact:
Simon White, Managing Director, Investment Trusts, BlackRock Investment
Management (UK) Limited -
Tel: 020 7743 5284
Evy Hambro, Fund Manager, BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited –
Tel: 020 7743 3000
Press enquiries:
Lucy Horne, Lansons Communications – Tel: 020 7294 3689
E-mail: lucyh@lansons.com
12 Throgmorton Avenue
London EC2N 2DL
16 August 2018
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