Portfolio Update

BLACKROCK WORLD MINING TRUST PLC (LEI - LNFFPBEUZJBOSR6PW155)

All information is at 30 November 2023 and unaudited.
 

Performance at month end with net income reinvested
	One	Three	One	Three	Five
	Month	Months	Year	Years	Years
Net asset value	3.2%	-2.9%	-12.7%	40.4%	97.2%
Share price	2.5%	-5.0%	-15.9%	42.7%	123.0%
MSCI ACWI Metals & Mining 30% Buffer 10/40 Index (Net)*	4.4%	1.0%	-5.4%	34.8%	72.6%
* (Total return) Sources: BlackRock, MSCI ACWI Metals & Mining 30% Buffer 10/40 Index, Datastream

At month end

Net asset value (including income)1:	574.09p
Net asset value (capital only):	559.35p
Share price:	548.00p
Discount to NAV2:	4.5%
Total assets:	£1,248.4m
Net yield3:	7.3%
Net gearing:	13.5%
Ordinary shares in issue:	191,183,036
Ordinary shares held in Treasury:	1,828,806
Ongoing charges4:	0.95%
Ongoing charges5:	0.84%

1 Includes net revenue of 14.74p.

2 Discount to NAV including income.

3 Based on a final dividend of 23.50p per share declared on 2 March 2023 in respect of year ended 31 December 2022, a first interim dividend of 5.50p per share declared on 18 April, a second interim dividend of 5.50p per share declared on 24 August and a third interim dividend of 5.50p per share declared on 11 October 2023 with ex-date 23 November 2023 and pay date of 22 December 2023 in respect of the year ending 31 December 2023.

4 The Company’s ongoing charges are calculated as a percentage of average daily net assets and using the management fee and all other operating expenses, excluding finance costs, direct transaction costs, custody transaction charges, VAT recovered, taxation and certain other non-recurring items for the year ended 31 December 2022.

5 The Company’s ongoing charges are calculated as a percentage of average daily gross assets and using the management fee and all other operating expenses, excluding finance costs, direct transaction costs, custody transaction charges, VAT recovered, taxation and certain other non-recurring items for the year ended 31 December 2022.

Country Analysis	Total Assets (%)
Global	66.8
Latin America	7.8
Canada	7.6
Australasia	6.9
United States	6.9
Other Africa	2.8
Indonesia	0.8
South Africa	0.2
Net Current Assets	0.2
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	100.0
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Sector Analysis	Total Assets (%)
Diversified	38.1
Copper	21.2
Gold	15.4
Steel	7.1
Industrial Minerals	5.7
Aluminium	3.0
Uranium	2.6
Iron Ore	2.5
Platinum Group Metals	1.7
Nickel	1.4
Mining Services	1.0
Zinc	0.1
Net Current Assets	0.2
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	100.0
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Ten largest investments
Company	Total Assets %
Vale:
Equity	6.8
Debenture	2.8
BHP:
Equity	7.6
Royalty	1.5
Glencore	8.1
Rio Tinto	7.0
Freeport-McMoRan	4.6
Newmont	3.5
Barrick Gold	3.2
Wheaton Precious Metals	3.1
Anglo American	2.8
Cameco Corp	2.6

Asset Analysis	Total Assets (%)
Equity	97.1
Bonds	2.2
Convertible Bonds	0.6
Option	-0.1
Net Current Assets	0.2
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	100.0
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Commenting on the markets, Evy Hambro and Olivia Markham, representing the Investment Manager noted:

Performance The Company’s NAV rose by 3.2% in November, underperforming its reference index, the MSCI ACWI Metals and Mining 30% Buffer 10/40 Index (net return), which rose by 4.4% (performance figures in GBP). November was a strong month for broader equity markets, with the MSCI ACWI TR Index rising by 3.8% (in GBP terms). Signs of moderating inflation and easing interest rate expectations contributed to a positive market sentiment amongst investors. The mining sector performed well but modestly lagged broader equity markets. China’s manufacturing PMI reached a three-month high, rising to 50.7 from 49.5 in October. Mined commodities were up across the board, with the copper and iron ore prices (62% fe) rising by 4.5% and 7.8% respectively. The copper price was buoyed by the shock to supply caused by the closing of the Cobre de Panama asset in Panama, which accounts for 1.5% of global copper supply. Iron ore prices appeared to be up on China’s seasonal restocking ahead of Chinese New Year. Elsewhere, the precious metals also performed well on geopolitical risk in the Middle East, an uncertain macroeconomic outlook, a fall in real rates and weakness in the US dollar. For reference, gold and silver prices rose by 2.1% and 9.2% respectively. Strategy and Outlook China has re-opened but with less impact than had been expected early this year. Uncertainty persists around China’s commodity demand, but we are seeing the Chinese administration announce financial support incrementally. Longer-term, we are excited by the structural demand growth for a range of mined commodities that will result from the low carbon transition. Meanwhile, commodity supply is likely to be constrained by the capital discipline of recent years, whilst inventories for many mined commodities are at historic lows. Mining companies have low levels of debt, continue to return capital to shareholders but appear to be entering a higher capital expenditure phase. In 2023, we have seen Brown to Green emerge as a key theme, where mining companies are focusing on reducing the greenhouse gas emissions intensity associated with their production. We expect to see a re-rating for the mining companies able to best navigate this and are playing this in the portfolio. All data points are in USD terms unless stated otherwise.

14 December 2023 Latest information is available by typing www.blackrock.com/uk/brwm on the internet. Neither the contents of the Manager’s website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Manager’s website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.

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Release

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