Rio Tinto, one of the world’s leading mining groups, has warned that its customers are increasingly cautious in the face of global economic uncertainty, pointing to volatile iron ore prices and slimmer aluminium profit margins.
Tom Albanese, Rio’s chief executive, told investors at a seminar on Monday that the prolonged eurozone crisis and weaker outlook for the US were “inevitably affecting customer sentiment, which has become more negative in recent months”.
Mr Albanese was one of the first leading mining executives to raise publicly concerns about slowing commodities demand, warning in September of customers requests to delay shipments. Since then, other executives at leading resource companies have tempered their outlook for commodities markets.