Rio Tinto slashes copper cost guidance as output climbs

The news: Rio Tinto has reported a 3% year-on-year increase in its copper equivalent production for the first half, with output reaching 442,000 tonnes for the six-month period.

The context: CEO Simon Trott attributed the strong performance to the company’s geographical diversification and sophisticated supply chains, which lifted the operational performance despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty.

The mining giant has achieved a 5% year-on-year increase in its global iron ore sales, alongside a 7% jump in second-quarter Pilbara sales fuelled by its ongoing productivity improvement program. Rio has maintained its full-year Pilbara iron ore unit cost guidance at USD23.5 ($33.6) to USD25 per wet metric tonne.

However, the miner sharply reduced its full-year copper net cost guidance to 30 to 50 US cents per pound, down from 65 to 75 US cents, due to higher-than-expected gold prices and productivity improvements.