Sibanye sparkles on dividend prospects as metals rise. As palladium rose to a record high, the company said it planned to resume

dividends in 2020.

Shares in Sibanye-Stillwater rose as much as 9.6% in heavy trade on Friday

after the price of palladium hit a record high and the company said it planned

to resume dividends within 18 months.

CEO Neal Froneman told Bloomberg that the group would start paying dividends

again once it had paid down its debt and would also consider buying more gold

assets in South Africa. The company halted dividend payments last year due

after a spate of acquisitions pushed debt higher.

Gold rose 1% on Friday and palladium hit a record level of $1,185.40. Gold was

boosted by dollar weakness after a US Federal Reserve said interest rates were

close to estimates of neutral, easing concerns about rapid interest rate

hikes. Concerns about the deficit of palladium in the market boosted the

metal, according to Reuters.

Sibanye-Stilwater is SA's biggest gold producer and the third largest producer

of palladium and platinum. More than three-quarters of its US production of

platinum group metals is palladium.

In July, the company entered a streaming agreement with Wheaton Precious

Metals which commits it to deliver a percentage of the gold and palladium it

produces in the US. It's already received the first upfront payment of $500

million. It said the deal would result in a big reduction in its leverage and

reduce financing costs.

Its shares closed 7.9% firmer on Friday at 9.24 rand.

Sibanye CEO sees dividends resumed by 2020 after paying down debt

-- Bull Street (@bullstreetco) November 16, 2018