Rio Tinto's copper output slumps on Chile strike

Sydney

MINING giant Rio Tinto reported a plunge in its copper output on Thursday as a strike in Chile and Indonesian regulatory changes hit production.

In a quarterly report, the world's second biggest miner said that copper output slumped 37 per cent in the first quarter compared with the same period last year to 84.2 thousand tonnes, adding that it had cut its production forecast for the year.