Hochschild confident of hitting annual output goal

LONDON, May 9 (Reuters) - Latin American silver and gold miner Hochschild Mining Plc (HOCM.L: Quote, Profile, Research) said it was confident of achieving its 2008 output goal of 26 million attributable silver equivalent ounces after a good performance in the first four months.

"We remain positive on the fundamentals for silver and gold given the prospects for investment demand based on continued U.S. dollar weakness, concerns about growing inflation and a further inflow of money into the commodities sector," the company said in a statement for the annual shareholder meeting. (Reporting by Mike Elliott; Editing by Chris Wills)