(Bloomberg) -- Anglo American Plc reported earnings that were little changed from a year earlier and beat expectations, after a wider commodity rally helped balance out another difficult year for its diamond business and a collapse in coal profits.

The company is the last of the major miners to report earnings in what’s been a bumper season for investors, with BHP Group and Rio Tinto Group already handing back record dividends. The payouts, along with a recent surge in metal prices, have stoked fresh speculation about a new commodities supercycle, driven by tight supplies and strong demand as the world moves to decarbonize.

So far Anglo’s returns have been more muted then some of its rivals. The company’s De Beers diamond unit reported a slump in profit after the industry was hit hard by the pandemic, and its coal earnings plunged after weaker prices and production setbacks in Australia.

Anglo said it would return 72 cents a share to investors, as the century-old mining company cashed in on surging prices for iron ore, palladium and copper. Anglo reported underlying earnings of $9.8 billion compared with $10 billion a year earlier.

Anglo has also differentiated itself from peers by being more aggressive in targeting growth. The company is planning to finish building a giant new copper mine in Peru next year and is also developing a potash mine in the U.K.

Copper touched the highest since 2011 Thursday as investors bet a raft of measures to boost growth will see consumption outstrip near-term supply. Prices of other commodities such as oil and iron ore have also surged, while mining stocks are at the highest in a decade.

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