Proactive Investors - Rio Tinto PLC (LON:RIO) will provide its first quarterly update of 2023 on Thursday following a rebound in copper and iron ore prices over the last six months.
Copper prices have risen over 24% since mid-October to US$1.13 per pound, according to Trading Economics, while iron ore has climbed 26% to US$120 per tonne.
Rio Tinto had reported a 38% drop in profits in 2022 on the back of lower iron ore prices as demand from China weakened.
Despite China’s post-Covid recovery looming, whether the country wants the key materials is another matter.
Indeed, Rio Tinto shares have rebounded 28.5% in the past six months as prices regained ground, but strain from the pandemic is still hitting Chinese steel production, SP Angel analysts say, with Beijing expected to cap domestic steel production at 2022 levels this month.
This would affect over half of the world’s steel producers, marking bad news for FTSE 100-listed Rio Tinto, which had placed hopes on China’s recovery in its last update.
Aside from demand, Rio Tinto could also provide insight on its joint venture agreement with First Quantum Materials PLC over the La Granja copper project in Peru and its clean-up of the Ranger uranium mine in Australia.