No longer the darling of investors.

No longer the darling of investors Were analysts and investors being unreasonable when they bristled at Anglo American's decision to scrap its dividend for the first time in 70 years? One way of answering the question is that markets simply react. Anglo has long been a generous dividend payer, and fund managers and individuals have come to rely on that. They punished the stock with a 15% fall.

There was also more than a hint of insensitivity to SA investors' expectations, with the group apparently determined to underplay its SA corporate heritage whenever possible.

Another way of looking at the dividend cancellation is that it demonstrates just how hard and …