"The main reasons for the increase are the greater sales in physical terms, increase in the average annual selling prices of non-ferrous metals, metals of the palladium group (except palladium proper) and gold, as well as the consolidation of financial performance of the Stillwater Co.", reads the communique.
The 2003 net profit, mostly ordinary shares, was 861 million dollars - a 47-percent increase from 584 million dollars in 2002. The declared profit (after operations with derivative financial instruments) increased from 315 million dollars (10 percent of the gross proceeds) in 2002 to 861 million dollars (17 percent of the gross proceeds) in 2003.
The favourable nickel market situation, together with the 37% increase in the physical volume of sales to 308,000 tonnes, promoted proceeds from nickel sales by 67% from 2002. Similarly, as a result of the greater physical volume of copper sales by 6% and the higher selling prices, the sale of copper increased by 15% in 2003 to 828 million dollars' worth.
The average annual export price of nickel increased from 6.728 dollars per tonne in 2002 to 8.991 dollars per tonne in 2003; the average annual export price of copper increased from $1.563 per tonne to $1.765 per tonne, respectively.
The volume of palladium sales increased by 242% percent to 640 million dollars from 187 million dollars in 2002. The share of palladium in the total volume of earnings increased from 6% in 2002 to 12% in 2003. Sales of platinum increased by 39 percent to 537 million dollars from 387 million dollars in 2002.
The total cost of sold metals increased by 64 percent in 2003 to 2.870 billion dollars in 2003.
Norilsk Nickel is Russia's largestand among the world's largest companies producing non-ferrous and precious metals. It accounts for over 20 percent of the world output of nickel, over 10 percent of cobalt and 3 percent of copper. On the Russian market, Norilsk Nickel accounts for about 96 percent of the national output of nickel, 55 percent of copper and 95 percent of cobalt.
