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Rio Tinto insider sells stake in miner

An iron ore surge continues to propel the group's earnings higher, with a new record price hit this week
April 28, 2021
  • Rio Tinto set for another strong year as iron ore hits new record
  • New chief commercial officer Alf Barrios sells almost £5m in shares

Iron ore hit a new record high this week, of almost $194 a tonne (t). This is driven by demand from China and expectations of a tighter market. At the same time, miners are trading at years-long highs and paying out hefty dividends. 

This price level is likely to stick as well. At the end of April, Australian deliveries of iron ore were down a third according to BMO Capital Markets, following a cyclone earlier in April. 

Rio Tinto’s (RIO) share price is up over two-thirds in the past 12 months, with strong copper prices also helping it along. This increase is slightly ahead of fellow Anglo-Australian BHP (BHP) despite Rio’s various crises of 2020. 

The departure of Jean-Sébastien Jacques over the destruction of the Juukan Gorge resting places brought with it a wider executive shake-up in January. New boss Jakob Stausholm promoted aluminium boss Alf Barrios to chief commercial officer, replacing Simon Trott, who takes on the key job of iron ore executive. 

Last week, Barrios sold £4.9m in Rio shares. Investors’ Chronicle understands the sale was linked to his move from Canada to Singapore, where Rio has a commercial office. Rio declined to comment on the sale. 

Management pay has been a hot topic for Rio investors this year. Major shareholders voted against the remuneration report at the London AGM this month, although the voting figures will be released after the 6 May Australian AGM. Jacques was able to hang onto over £7m in pay and bonuses for the year, an increase on 2019. 

Remuneration committee chair Sam Laidlaw told the Financial Times this month Jacques had been stripped of as much as was “legally defensible”. 

That may still not prove enough to appease some shareholders. Rio did remove some bonuses from Jacques, former Australian iron ore boss Chris Salisbury and former corporate relations chief Simone Niven, but still paid out millions of pounds to the trio. 

Rio Tinto had a rocky 2020 in all areas but the balance sheet. It looks to have come through the Juukan Gorge crisis now, although is still talking about how it will improve relations with local communities and some shareholders are still restless. Hold at 6,116p. 

Last IC View: Hold, 6,465p, 17 Feb 2021

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Gamma CommunicationsAndrew Stone*15-Apr-211795302,583
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