Orica posts $165m first-half profit

Explosives maker Orica has posted a first-half profit of $165.2 million, slightly lower than a year earlier, with steady volumes and performance in all its regions.

The company lifted sales revenue for the six months to march 31 by two per cent to $2.88 billion, and declared an unfranked interim dividend of 16.5 cents a share, down from down from 22 cents a year earlier.

Managing Director Alberto Calderon said most of the company's mining volumes had remained intact despite the coronavirus crisis, but expects second-half volumes to be 10-15 per cent lower than what was expected before the COVID pandemic.