Rio Tinto First‑Half 2026 Results
Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX:RIO) saw its Sydney‑listed shares climb 4.8% to A$167.11, the highest level since 7 July, outperforming the S&P/ASX 200, which rose 1% on the day. The broader Australian market index AXJO added 0.94%, while Rio’s own ticker gained 4.62%.
The miner reported a 47% jump in first‑half net profit to $6.66 billion, marking its strongest half‑year performance since 2022. Underlying earnings rose 43% to $6.85 billion, beating the S&P Global Visible Alpha consensus estimate of $6.61 billion. Underlying EBITDA increased 28% to $14.83 billion, supported by higher realised prices for iron ore, copper, aluminium and lithium, as well as stronger production volumes and continued productivity improvements.
Rio declared an interim dividend of $2.11 per share, up from $1.48 a year earlier and above the market consensus of $2.03. Chief Executive Simon Trott highlighted that the company has already delivered $870 million in productivity gains and remains on track to achieve an annualised run‑rate of $1.8 billion by year‑end. Trott also reaffirmed the company’s commitment to portfolio simplification, expecting to announce roughly $5 billion of asset divestments by the end of 2026.
The CEO pointed to structural demand from artificial‑intelligence‑driven data‑centre construction as a long‑term growth catalyst, noting that accelerating investment in hyperscale data centres will boost consumption of copper, steel, aluminium and lithium. Correspondingly, copper‑equivalent production rose 3% in the first half, reflecting higher copper output, increased lithium production and robust iron‑ore sales.