Glencore soars on debt reduction plans; Old Mutual drops 12% post downgrade

Mining firm to bring debt down to $18bn

Glencore is up 11% in mid-morning trading after announcing further reductions to its debt target, while Old Mutual's shares have dropped following a downgrade to the stock.

The company now intends to reduce debt by $13bn, compared to its previous target of $10.2bn. This will bring total debt, which rose to $30bn after its acquisition of Xstrata in 2013, down to $18-$19bn by the end of 2016. The plan involves asset sales, suspending dividend payments and raising more than $2.5bn of new equity capital. It also includes the sales of a minority stake in its agricultural division, as well as its copper mines in Chile and Australia. Income managers shrug off Glencore fears to buy into mining sector The mining giant also announced plans to cut expenditure fro...