LOSSES at Glencore narrowed in the first half of the year after the miner sold off assets, with the firm continuing to make inroads into reducing its debt mountain.
Glencore said that its net loss fell from 676 million US dollars (£511m) to 369 million US dollars (£279m) in the period.
Chief executive Ivan Glasenberg said: "Since we announced our measures to reduce debt levels last September, we have made considerable progress towards achieving our goals.
"We have already largely achieved our asset disposals target of 4-5 billion US dollars (£3-3.8bn) with a diverse and material pool of asset sales processes also ongoing."
Net debt in the period fell, but still stands at 23.6 billion US dollars (£17.8bn).
A collapse in commodity prices last year saw Glencore scrap its dividend and embark on a new strategy that includes selling assets and cutting costs.
Mr Glasenberg said that commodities markets had struck a "more constructive tone" in recent months, supporting prices for its key products.
However, he added: "We remain mindful that underlying markets continue to be volatile.
"We are alert to and have a high degree of proven flexibility in adapting to changing market conditions."
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