Rio Tinto posts highest first-half earnings in four years on copper strength
Financial Performance and Strategic Developments
Strong First-Half Earnings Driven by Copper Division
July 29 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto on Wednesday posted its highest half-year underlying earnings in four years, as a surge in profits from its copper division and higher commodity prices more than offset softer earnings from iron ore.
The world's largest iron ore producer reported underlying earnings of $6.85 billion for the six months ended June 30, up 43% from $4.81 billion a year earlier and broadly in line with a Visible Alpha consensus estimate of $6.80 billion.
Copper Division Outperforms
Underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) surged 84% to $5.7 billion for its copper division, driven partly by higher output from its Mongolian operations.
Iron Ore Division Performance
Iron ore, which remains the group's largest earnings contributor, generated underlying EBITDA of $6.8 billion, down 1% from a year earlier.
Dividends and Production Outlook
Dividend Announcement
The company declared its highest interim dividend in four years at $2.11 per share, compared with $1.48 per share a year earlier.
Production and Sales Forecasts
The Anglo-Australian miner kept its 2026 production and sales forecasts unchanged.
Strategic Initiatives and Sustainability Goals
Portfolio Management and Cash Release Initiatives
Rio said it remained on track to unlock $5 billion to $10 billion of cash through portfolio management and infrastructure initiatives, with opportunities to release around $5 billion by the end of 2026 already being progressed.
Sustainability and Emissions Targets
Emission Reduction Commitments
The company retained its target to cut Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 50% from 2018 levels by 2030, but warned that achieving the goal depended on the timely delivery of third-party renewable energy projects and commercial agreements that could not be guaranteed.
(Reporting by Roshan Thomas and Sneha Kumar in Bengaluru, Melanie Burton in Melbourne; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
