NEWS - Resources & Energy
BHP says business as usual with China
By a staff reporter
BHP Billiton Ltd says it has not been affected by the arrest of four Rio Tinto Ltd employees in China, with the mining giant's chief financial officer saying it is business as usual with Beijing.
Chinese prosecutors have formally arrested four employees of mining giant Rio on suspicion of violating commercial secrets and bribery, according to reports from the official Xinhua news agency.
Australian national Stern Hu and three Chinese employees of the Anglo-Australian company - Liu Caikui, Ge Minqiang, and Wang Yong - are suspected of "using improper means to obtain commercial secrets about our country's steel businesses", Xinhua cited prosecutors in Shanghai as saying.
BHP Billiton's chief financial officer Alex Vanselow told ABC's Lateline Business"for us it's business as usual with China ... so we haven't been affected by any of the issues that are occurring in China."
Mr Vanselow said BHP was "surprised" but not "stunned" by events in China, adding that "... absolutely we are watching it closely."
Asked if the miner's proposed iron ore joint venture in Western Australia with Rio had been affected, Mr Vanselow said the project was going ahead at full steam.
"The joint venture is progressing at full steam ahead ... we are working together on the regulatory side of things ... and the details of the joint venture, and both are progressing to plan," Mr Vanselow said.
On Wednesday BHP, the world's biggest miner, posted a 62 per cent drop in annual profit following a sharp decline in commodity prices, but says demand from North America, Japan and Europe is improving and demand from China would move closer to the real purchasing of customers in the near term.
BHP Billiton posted a 61.7 per cent decline in net profit to $US5.877 billion ($A7.14 billion) in the 2009 financial year.
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