Metal recycler Sims Metal Management says it will take advantage of current market volatility and buy back up to 10 per cent of its own shares.

Sims Metal says it will buy back a maximum of 10 percent of its issued shares, or 20,603,871 shares, over a 12-month period beginning October 24.

The timing and actual number of shares to be bought would depend on market conditions and other factors, the company said.

Sims Metal shares last traded at $12.29, well below the $21.57 they were priced at at the beginning of the year.

The company’s board considered it appropriate to establish the buyback, particularly during times of share price volatility, Sims Metal said.

Chief executive Daniel Dienst said the buyback would not detract from the company’s growth strategy.

“Effecting a repurchase of shares on the open market and perpetuating our growth objectives are not mutually exclusive propositions,” he said in a statement on Friday.

As of June 30, Sims Metal’s net debt represented four percent of its total capital, he said.