Weak Copper Prices Trim Asarco Earnings

Asarco Inc. on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $5.1 million, or diluted earnings of 13 cents per share. That compares with net earnings of $24.3 million, or diluted earnings of 57 cents per share, for the final quarter in 1996.

For the year, Asarco reported earnings of $143.4 million, or diluted earnings of $3.42 per share, compared with net earnings of $138.3 million, or diluted earnings of $3.23 per share, for all of 1996.

Asarco Chairman Richard de J. Osborne said the lower fourth-quarter earnings for 1997 reflected a sharp decrease in copper prices in recent months. Average price of copper on the Comex, a New York commodities exchange market, was 12 cents lower than in the same period in 1996, Asarco said.