One of South Africa’s oldest companies strikes gold

Gold Fields said on Thursday its full-year profit more than doubled, driven by record-high bullion prices and increased output, which allowed the miner to boost dividends and announce a share buyback.

The price of gold soared by about 60% in 2025, driven by geopolitical and economic uncertainty, expectations of U.S. interest rate cuts and increased purchases by central banks amid a global de-dollarization trend.

This year has seen further momentum, with gold prices gaining 15%.

The surge in prices encouraged Gold Fields to ramp up production by 18% last year to 2.438 million ounces.

Headline earnings per share for the miner came in at $2.88, up from $1.33 per share the year before.

Gold Fields declared a final dividend of 18.50 rand per share, up from 7 rand per share. That brought its total annual payout to 25.50 rand, compared to 10 rand per share in 2024.

The company will also distribute $353 million in additional returns to shareholders, made up of $253 million in special dividends and $100 million in share buybacks.

Gold Fields CEO Mike Fraser said the company was engaging with the government of Ghana, which has proposed doubling the gold royalty rate in response to the bullion price rally and the talks had been constructive.

“While we understand the deep social needs in-country, we are trying to be clear that governments, and not just in Ghana, should be really measured about not creating structural, uncompetitive situations,” Fraser told Reuters in an interview.

Gold Fields’ Tarkwa mine in Ghana was its most productive mine in 2025 across its portfolio, which also includes assets in South Africa, Australia, Chile and Peru. Tarkwa produced 475,000 ounces of gold, about a fifth of Gold Fields’ total output last year.