Rio Tinto’s Iron Ore Production Misses Analyst Estimates

Rio Tinto Group, the third-biggest mining company, reported a lower-than-estimated 9 percent increase in first-quarter iron ore production as inclement weather disrupted mining operations.

Output of the steelmaking raw material rose to 45.6 million metric tons in the three months to March 31 from 41.9 million tons a year earlier, London-based Rio said in a statement today. The result compares with the 47 million-ton median estimate of three analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.