London, Feb 10, 2026, 08:33 GMT — Regular session
Rio Tinto (RIO.L) slipped 0.5% to 7,018 pence just after the open in London, trading lower from its 7,048 pence start by 0804 GMT. Monday’s close was 7,051 pence, roughly 3% above Friday’s finish. Still, shares haven’t retested the 52-week high of 7,227 pence.
Why does it matter? Rio’s shares have been moving almost tick-for-tick with the rest of the mining group—one reason the FTSE 100 hovered close to a record high on Monday. Gold jumped past $5,000 an ounce, copper followed higher, and miners—both in precious and industrial metals—caught a lift.
For Rio holders, the focus swings right back to the usual wildcards: commodity prices and whatever the company says next. Shares are sitting close to their yearly highs, so even a minor move in metals or mood can hit the stock in a hurry.
Gold, a major force in shaping sector sentiment lately, edged lower on Tuesday but managed to hold above the $5,000 mark. Spot prices lost 0.7% to $5,030.80 an ounce as of 0716 GMT. Silver took a heavier hit, dropping 2.1% to $81.63, according to Reuters. “Gold has something of a built-in upside bias,” said Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastylive. Jigar Trivedi of IndusInd Securities called $5,000 the key level for gold and set $80 as silver’s support, though he flagged a “slight tilt towards negativity” as investors locked in profits. Reuters
Big moves in iron ore and copper ripple straight through Rio’s earnings, making those metals a rough guide to the miner’s cash generation — and, by extension, its room to hand out dividends.
The next real shakeup comes with the company’s annual results. That’s when investors zero in on dividend cues, watch cost direction, and scan for any tweaks to spending plans. Traders, for their part, are set to parse management’s take on demand and pricing for the second quarter.
Deal chatter has quieted, yet it’s still hanging around. Last week, Rio and Glencore dropped merger discussions when they couldn’t nail down terms. A few investors saw this as sidestepping both a messy combination and the risk of paying too much.
Bulls may face trouble if metals volatility picks up again. A firmer dollar and sliding commodity prices can erase mining stocks’ advances in a hurry, particularly with the sector coming off a sharp rally.
Rio plans to release its 2025 annual results on Feb. 19.
