RIO CHAIRMAN SET FOR INVESTOR TALKS
NEW Rio Tinto chairman Jan du Plessis will meet key shareholders today, as pressure builds on the indebted miner to change its controversial $19.5bn (£13bn) tie-up with Chinese state-owned Chinalco, in favour of a rights issue.
Du Plessis has already held meetings with a number of shareholders this week and has said he is prepared to listen to objections to the deal, which investors say rides roughshod over their pre-emption rights.
The firm, which is also listed in London, saw its Sydney shares close down 11 per cent at A$57.90 (£28.89) last night, their biggest one-day fall since last December.
The deal also still needs to be approved by Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board.