Anglo American names its next chief executive

Anglo American operates in more than 20 countries

Mining group Anglo American has announced that Mark Cutifani, the current boss of AngloGold Ashanti, will be its next chief executive.

Mr Cutifani will take up the top job at Anglo American on 3 April.

An Australian, he replaces American Cynthia Carroll, who announced in October that she would be standing down after pressure from shareholders.

Ms Carroll had been in the job for five years, during which time Anglo American saw a big fall in its share price.

Shares in Anglo American, the world's largest producer of platinum, closed 1.4% higher on the London Stock Exchange.

'Seasoned miner'

Mr Cutifani, 54, becomes only the second non-South African to lead Anglo American, which gets more than half its earnings from the country, despite having operations in more than 20 countries.

Analysts said Anglo American was likely impressed by his five-year stewardship of South African gold miner AngloGold at a time when both companies have been affected by widespread strike action in South Africa's mining sector in recent years.

AngloGold Ashanti was formed in 2004 from the merger of AngloGold and Ashanti Goldfields. AngloGold had previously been majority-owned by Anglo American, which has its headquarters in London.

Anglo American's chairman John Parker described Mr Cutifani as a "highly respected leader" in the sector.

Mr Parker added: "He is a seasoned miner, with broad experience of mining operations and projects across a wide range of commodities and geographies, including South Africa and the Americas."

Mr Cutifani will remain as chief executive of AngloGold Ashanti until the end of March.