New Rio Tinto boss should be open to large deals - report

(Sharecast News) - Rio Tinto's new boss should be open to transformative merger and acquisition deals as well as sharpening productivity and cost cuts, according to a media report on Tuesday. The world's biggest iron ore miner is in the later stages of picking a new chief executive through an internal and external search process after it surprised shareholders in May by announcing Jakob Stausholm would step down after 4-1/2 years.

Finalists for the top job will make their pitches to the board in London this week, the Reuters news agency reported, citing two unnamed sources familiar with the search process, and an appointment could be announced as soon as late July, one of those sources said.

Chair Dominic Barton's preference for the new CEO to be open to large-scale deals, according to two other unnamed sources, and the timing of the board presentations have not been reported previously.