KUMBA IRON ORE, FROM ANGLO AMERICAN, WILL CUT OUTPUT BY 28%

Kumba Iron Ore, majority owned by Anglo American, said it will restructure Africa’s biggest mine for the steelmaking ingredient, cutting output there by 28% to combat the plunging price of the raw material. The stock fell to the lowest on record.

The new plan for the Sishen operation will target free-on-board unit costs of about $30 a metric ton and a break-even price of about $40 a ton cost and freight, Centurion, South Africa-based Kumba said onTuesday in a statement. Output for 2016 will be about 26 million tons, compared with a previous plan to produce 36 million tons.

Iron ore with 62% metal content delivered to Qingdao fell 2.4% to $39.06 a dry ton yesterday, a record low in daily prices compiled by Metal Bulletin dating back to May 2009. The metal has plunged 80% since its 2011 peak.