Rio Tinto flags up a slowdown in demand

Signs of a global slowdown in demand for resources came from commodity giant Rio Tinto today, when it warned its markets were "softer than six months ago".

The London-listed miner said its order books were full and commodity prices remained robust, but added: "Customer sentiment is now more cautious, reflecting concerns over the health of the OECD economies and persistent volatility in financial markets."

Chief executive Tom Albanese added: "We've been saying for some time that we expected to see patterns of increased price volatility amidst turbulent financial markets and that scenario is playing out. It is noticeable that markets are somewhat weaker than they were six months ago."

Rio's long-term forecast for demand remains unchanged, however.

It expects growth from metal-hungry developing economies to see demand for copper, aluminium and iron ore double over the next 15 to 20 years.

Shares inched up 30.5p to 3535.5p.