BHP has raised its copper production guidance for fiscal 2026 after its copper operations pushed the company’s fiscal half-year net profit higher.
The company said its profit for the six months to December 31, 2025 rose 28 per cent to US$5.6 billion driven by its operational excellence and disciplined cost control, along with average higher price.
Copper and iron ore were standout performers, with copper contributing the largest share of BHP’s overall earnings at 51 per cent of underlying earnings.
BHP raised its fiscal 2026 copper production guidance to 1.9 million tonnes to 2 million tonnes, from its previous guidance of between 1.8 million tonnes to 2 million tonnes.
BHP CEO Mike Henry said this is the result of strong performance at Escondida and solid contributions from its operations in Chile and South Australia.
“We have achieved 30 per cent growth in copper production in the last four years, positioning us ahead of the strengthening copper market that we had anticipated.”
Copper prices are surging as it is a key component of electric vehicles, renewable energy infrastructure and huge data centres required for AI.
The average copper price reached highs in the second half of 2025 and finished the period close to US$12,500 per tonne.
“With four compelling growth options across Chile, Argentina, Arizona and South Australia, we are well positioned to capture the forecast higher long term copper prices,” Henry said.
BHP said its revenue for the first half rose 11 per cent to US$27.9 billion from US$25.2 billion in the first half of 2025.
Looking ahead, BHP said it expected the global economy to grow by about 3 per cent in 2026.
“We are optimistic that the economic backdrop is supportive for our key commodities,” Henry said.
“Against a structurally higher cost environment, these conditions reinforce the importance of productivity and cost discipline and play to the strengths of BHP’s low cost, diversified portfolio.”
