Gold miner Harmony on Monday saw its shares tumble five percent after the group released its results which dealers called 'unimpressive'.

According to the group, cash operating profit came to R645.2-million for the three months ended June, a 111.1 percent surge, boosted by the strong gold price and its use of a tighter cost control.

However, it reported a headline loss per share of 52 cents in the quarter, from the 50 cents loss reported in the previous three months.

Moreover, gold production also fell by 1.3 percent in the June quarter from the previous three months to 17 243 kilograms, Harmony said.

According to CE Bernard Swanepoel, the company is now positioned to take advantage of the climbing gold price. "This is a process that will continue for the next 18 months, but we expect to start reaping the benefits by the end of the fiscal year," he said.

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