Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto has again increased its iron ore output, even as prices plunged during 2014, ABC online reported Tuesday. The miner increased iron ore shipments by 13% in the December quarter compared with the same period last year, and shipped off 17% more ore in 2014 than over the previous year. That is even as spot prices for the steel making commodity slumped from as $135 per dry metric ton in January 2014 to around $70 by year end in the major Chinese port of Qingdao. Rio Tinto said it achieved an average price of $84.30 per wet metric ton, which would imply a dry price higher than that.
