Anglo American Reports £2.8bn Loss After De Beers Diamond Business Write-Down
Mining giant Anglo American has reported net losses of 3.7 billion dollars (£2.8 billion) for the year 2025, with a significant portion attributed to a massive impairment charge on its De Beers diamond business. The FTSE 100 firm wrote down the value of De Beers by another 2.3 billion US dollars (£1.7 billion), marking the third such write-down in three consecutive years.
Challenges in the Diamond Market
The latest impairment reflects ongoing struggles in the diamond sector, where demand has slumped due to a lengthy downturn and the rising popularity of synthetic lab-grown diamonds. Anglo American, which holds an 85% stake in De Beers, has been attempting to sell the business as part of its strategic response to these market pressures.
Annual figures revealed that underlying losses at De Beers widened substantially to 511 million dollars (£380 million) in 2025, up from 25 million dollars (£19 million) in 2024. The company cited "rough diamond trading conditions remained challenging" as a key factor, leading to a 12% reduction in diamond production last year.
Historical Write-Downs and Strategic Moves
This recent write-down follows previous impairments of 2.9 billion dollars (£2.2 billion) in 2024 and 1.6 billion dollars (£1.2 billion) in 2023, highlighting persistent difficulties in the diamond industry. Despite these challenges, Anglo American reported a slight 2% increase in underlying earnings to 6.4 billion dollars (£4.8 billion) for the year.
Chief executive Duncan Wanblad, in the full-year results, stated that the firm was "progressing the separation of De Beers," indicating ongoing efforts to divest from the troubled diamond business.
Merger with Teck Resources
In a separate strategic development, Anglo American is preparing to merge with Canada's Teck Resources in a mammoth 50 billion dollar (£37.2 billion) deal. This merger, which received shareholder approval at the end of December 2025, aims to create one of the world's largest copper producers under the combined entity, Anglo Teck.
The firms are currently working to secure regulatory approval across different jurisdictions throughout 2026. This move is seen as part of Anglo American's broader strategy to shift focus away from diamonds and towards more lucrative commodities like copper.
The combination of the De Beers write-downs and the pending merger underscores a period of significant transition for Anglo American as it navigates challenging market conditions and repositions its business for future growth.
