Rio Tinto expects iron ore demand to keep growing
Mining giant Rio Tinto said on Thursday that it expects demand for iron ore and steel to continue growing despite a slowdown in China.
FTSE 100
8,119.48
12:20 26/04/24
FTSE 350
4,460.13
12:20 26/04/24
FTSE All-Share
4,413.56
12:20 26/04/24
Mining
10,562.56
11:59 26/04/24
Rio Tinto
5,481.00p
12:19 26/04/24
The group said it continues to expect 2.5% average annual growth for steel demand across China and the rest of the world over the next 15 years, confirming its earlier forecast for Chinese crude steel production to reach around 1bn tonnes by 2030.
This is in contrast with peer BHP Billiton, which downgraded its estimates for peak Chinese steel production last week to between 935m and 985m tonnes from a previous forecast of 1bn to 1.1bn tonnes.
Rio Tinto said 220m Chinese are expected to move to cities in the next 15 years, compared with between 320m between 2000 and 2015.
The miner said emerging markets are likely to play an increasingly significant role in the iron ore market, with non-Chinese steel demand seen rising by 65% by 2030.
At 0958 BST, Rio shares were up 3.8% at 2,353p.