BHP Billiton H1 profit almost halves

Sydney

GLOBAL mining giant BHP Billiton on Tuesday said that its first-half net profit almost halved to US$4.26 billion on the back of collapsing commodity prices as it reiterated a plan to demerge non-core assets.

The 47.4 per cent slump in the six months to Dec 31 compared to US$8.1 billion in the previous corresponding period, with revenues dropping 11.9 per cent to US$29.9 billion.

Underlying earnings - which…