WPIC: Platinum market expected to see 8 mt surplus in 2026

ARM released its latest annual results. Core earnings rose 19% year-on-year to ZAR 3.2 billion, net cash increased by 54% to ZAR 10.2 billion, and the group declared a final dividend of ZAR 7 per share. The group’s cash generation capacity improved markedly. Tsundzukani Mhlanga, CFO of ARM, noted that cash inflows reached ZAR 4.2 billion in the reporting period, a sharp jump from only ZAR 45 million in the prior year. Phillip Tobias, CEO of ARM, also announced that the board has approved a ZAR 15.2 billion investment to develop the Bokoni PGM project. Hosting South Africa’s second-largest PGM resource base, the project is expected to have a payback period of around 6.3 years and serves as a key growth asset for the group’s PGM business.

South Africa’s PGM mine supply posted a seemingly robust recovery in the first half of this year. However, the latest assessment from Heraeus Precious Metals warns that this should not be interpreted as the start of a long‑term production growth cycle for South Africa’s PGM sector. According to the production index from Statistics South Africa, domestic PGM mine output rose roughly 12% year‑on‑year in H1 2026. Mine productivity increased by merely around 1.5% over the same period, indicating that the bulk of output growth stemmed from the low base caused by heavy rainfall and floods in H1 2025 rather than structural productivity improvements at mines.