Mining behemoth Rio Tinto experienced solidly positive growth in profit in the first half of the year and has announced more share repurchases along with a dividend hike.
Its profits during the first half of 2018 were $4.42 billion, compared to $3.94 billion in the same period last year.
The company wants to buy back an additional $1 billion in shares, by the end of February 2019. It also reported an interim dividend of $1.27 per share, up 15 percent on the year. The total interim dividend was $2.2 billion, the highest ever in the company's history.
One of the major factors bolstering the firm’s financials/prospects is a rebound in prices of commodities, such as iron ore and copper.
The multinational said that it shipped 88.5 million tons of iron ore in the Q2 2018 - a 14% increase compared to the year-ago period – on the back of improved productivity and fewer weather tailwinds. It projects the year's shipments to be near the upper end of the guidance range of 330 to 340 million tons.