BHP profit pummelled by weak commodity prices

Global mining giant BHP Billiton Tuesday posted a first-half net loss of US$5.67 billion and slashed dividends as plunging commodity prices hammered the bottom line with the company warning of a prolonged period of volatility. Underlying earnings -- which exclude one-off writedowns -- were down 92 percent to US$412 million, reflecting the fate of miners around the world who have been hit by an income slump owing to a global economic slowdown, led by key customer China. "Slower growth in China an