Chinalco denies in talks to sell Rio stake: report

By IBTimes Staff Reporter | January 09 2010 11:56 AM

BEIJING- Aluminum Corp of China has denied that it is in talks to sell its stake in mining giant Rio Tinto, local media reported on Saturday.

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Chinalco said the Rio stake was a strategic investment as part of its diversification and internationalization plans, and that any decision to sell it would not be made lightly, the Chinese-language Beijing Times reported.

There has been market talk that China Investment Corp, the country's $300 billion sovereign wealth fund, may bid for state-owned Chinalco's roughly 9 percent stake in Rio. For related article, double-click on:

Rio's relations with Chinalco soured in July 2009 when it snubbed an offer that would have seen the Chinese group invest another $19.5 billion for a bigger equity partnership. Rio later opted to form an iron ore joint venture with rival BHP Billiton Ltd.

(Reporting by Simon Rabinovitch; Editing by Andy Bruce)

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