UPDATE 2-Gold miner Newmont's earnings beat market estimates

(Recasts with analyst comment, share price rise, outlook, metal
prices received)
April 20 (Reuters) - Gold and copper miner Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM)
Corp NEM.N reported lower quarterly earnings on Wednesday but
they blew past analyst estimates due to higher copper sales from
its Indonesian operation and a strong performance from its
Australasian mines.
Its shares rose 1.7 percent to $30.96 in after-hours
trading.
Newmont, the world's second-biggest gold miner by market
value, said its adjusted net income fell to $182 million, or 34
cents a share in the first quarter.
Although down from $229 million or 46 cents a share in the
year-ago period, it was well ahead of the 20 cents a share that
analysts were expecting, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S
estimates.
"A combination of lower capex, better operating performance
out of Australasia and more copper sales during the quarter is
really how that beat materialized," BMO Capital Markets analyst
Andrew Kaip said.
Greenwood Village, Colorado-based Newmont, left unchanged
the forecasts it made in February for gold and copper production
in 2016 and 2017.
The company said its net income from continuing operations
was $78 million, or 15 cents a share, in the quarter ended March
31. That compares with $175 million, or 35 cents a share, in the
same period a year ago when gold and copper prices were higher.
In the first quarter, attributable gold production from
Newmont mines in the Americas, Australia, Asia and Africa rose
to 1.23 million ounces of gold and 38,000 tonnes of copper. That
compares with 1.19 million ounces of gold and 37,000 tonnes of
copper in the same quarter a year ago.
All-in sustaining costs to produce one ounce of gold
improved to $828 an ounce in the first quarter from $849 in the
same quarter a year ago.
Prices received for its gold averaged $1,194 an ounce in the
first quarter, down from $1,203 per ounce in the first three
months of 2015. Average copper prices received fell to $2.02 a
pound from $2.34 per pound.
Earlier on Wednesday Newmont said vice-chair Noreen Doyle
has been appointed to succeed Vincent Calarco as board chair.
Calarco will remain as a director.