Sydney, Feb 23, 2026, 18:40 AEDT — The session wrapped with local markets closed.
- South32 (ASX: S32) finished the session at A$4.44, gaining 1.1% for the day.
- Copper picked up a bit, lifted by a softer U.S. dollar in the wake of a U.S. tariff decision—giving miners a boost.
- Eyes are on when South32’s Mozal aluminium smelter in Mozambique comes back online, as well as the upcoming dividend schedule.
South32 Ltd wrapped up Monday’s session at A$4.44, gaining 1.1% as traders responded to stronger base metals and a weaker dollar.
It’s relevant here: South32’s earnings track aluminium and copper prices closely, so the shares have been moving with swings in the metals market—not on new developments from the company itself. Early session trading saw copper on the London Metal Exchange gain 0.2% to $12,978.50 a metric ton, after briefly touching a high not seen in over a week, according to a Reuters story cited by Business Recorder.
The dollar slipped in currency trading after the U.S. Supreme Court tossed out a chunk of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Still, Trump responded with a temporary, broad 15% tariff on imports. “It weakens the dollar in the sense that it potentially benefits non-U.S. growth,” said Sim Moh Siong, currency strategist at OCBC Bank in Singapore. Reuters
South32 is still facing pressure from its Mozal aluminium smelter in Mozambique, with the facility set for “care and maintenance” as early as next month after the company couldn’t lock in affordable power past March. Outgoing CEO Graham Kerr warned on an earnings call this month that the firm was “running out” of crucial supplies and confirmed, “we’re definitely heading for care and maintenance.” Mozambique’s energy minister, meanwhile, insisted the government was doing “everything that is required” to prevent the shutdown. Reuters
Dividend dates are drawing renewed attention going into March. According to a regulatory filing, the record date lands on March 6, with dividends set to be paid out April 2. Market calendar data pegs the ex-dividend date at March 5.
Risk appetite looked patchy. Reuters’ Sydney wrap pointed to fresh questions swirling around U.S. trade policy; Wall Street futures and the dollar slipped in Asian trading. A currency strategist at NAB said the tariff picture was now “more uncertain than before.” Reuters
South32 faces a clear backdrop heading into Tuesday: what matters first are metals prices and currency moves, with company news coming after. If copper or aluminium suddenly snap back, or the U.S. dollar bounces, that could put pressure on the buying that pushed miners higher late Monday.
If tariff swings settle into persistently dampened global demand forecasts, base metals could take a hit—bad timing for South32, which is already bracing for a bumpy operational overhaul in Mozambique. The company still lacks clarity on when, or even how, it might restart there.
Eyes now turn to Trump’s State of the Union on Tuesday, followed by U.S.-Iran discussions in Geneva set for Thursday—both stirring haven demand. Gold surged after the tariff decision. South32 investors get one more date to circle: March 6, the interim dividend record.
