Freeport-McMoRan reported that third-quarter 2026 copper and gold output met expectations, Yahoo Finance reported on October 5, as the Grasberg recovery in Indonesia continues. Third-quarter consolidated copper production was approximately 830 million pounds, in line with expectations, according to TipRanks on October 2. Copper sales for the quarter are expected near 750 million pounds, below the company’s July forecast, while gold sales are expected at roughly 100,000 ounces, with about 60,000 ounces of gold sales deferred into the fourth quarter, Stock Titan reported.
The Grasberg mill averaged throughput of about 140,000 metric tons of ore per day during the quarter. Management’s ramp-up guidance is unchanged: roughly 80 percent of capacity by mid-2027 and near-full production by the end of 2027, following last year’s mudslide that disrupted the operation. Freeport is due to report full third-quarter results on October 27.
The market read the update as steady rather than exciting. Freeport shares rose about 4 percent in pre-market trading on October 5 in a strong tape for copper miners (Teck +5.1 percent, Vale +2.3 percent), but the move tracked the broader copper bounce on the weak US jobs print rather than company-specific news. With copper at $14,340 per tonne, the highest close since May, Freeport remains the purest large-cap read on the copper cycle, and the October 27 results will test whether the ramp is converting into cash flow.