LONDON (ShareCast) - Randgold Resources rose after it said net profit rose for the half year due to higher production in its gold mines in Mali and the increase in gold prices.

Net profit for the six months to June rose to $38.4m from $19.6n despite the negative impact of the weakening dollar and rising input costs. Second quarter net profit was up 11% to $20.2m.

“The profit increase is attributable to higher production at the Loulo gold mine in Mali and at the Morila joint venture, also in Mali, where Randgold Resources took over management control earlier this year, as well as to a higher received gold price,” said the group.

Chief executive Mark Bristow said the fact that Randgold has increased profits - at a time when cost pressures were intensifying - demonstrated its commitment to protecting margins. “We aim to achieve this by growing our production and by focusing on cost control and efficiency improvement in every aspect of our operations,” he said.

The group also said the latest drilling results from its recently announced Massawa project in Senegal confirmed that it was a major discovery.

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