Rio Tinto 1st Half Profit Rises 47%; Interim Dividend Raised

By Rhiannon Hoyle

Rio Tinto raised its interim dividend as it reported a 47% rise in first-half profit, supported by higher commodity prices and production.

The world's second-biggest miner by market value said it earned a net profit of $6.66 billion in the six months through June, up from $4.53 billion a year earlier.

Underlying earnings totaled $6.85 billion, up 43% on a year ago and above a consensus estimate of $6.61 billion collated by Visible Alpha.

Directors of Rio Tinto declared an interim dividend of $2.11 a share, which the miner said was equal to 50% of underlying earnings.

A year ago, the company paid out $1.48 a share, also equal to 50% of underlying earnings. Analysts expected an interim dividend of $2.03 a share, according to Visible Alpha.

Rio Tinto reported a 3% rise in copper-equivalent production for the first half of the year, which included a lift in copper output and global iron-ore sales. Prices for its main commodities, which also include aluminum and lithium, increased year over year.

"Our strong performance is underpinned by accelerating productivity across the business," said Chief Executive Simon Trott.

Trott took the helm of Rio Tinto nearly a year ago, promising to improve productivity, cut costs and sell assets in an effort to simplify the business.

"We have already banked $870 million of productivity benefits and are on track to reach an annualized run-rate of $1.8 billion by year-end, with significantly more to come as our multi-year program continues to scale," Trott said.

Write to Rhiannon Hoyle at rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 28, 2026 19:20 ET (23:20 GMT)