RE: NEWS ?? RIO HaltedRio Tinto shares are in a trading halt as its bank underwriters offload shares that were not taken up under its Australian equity raising, which attracted acceptances for 94.76 per cent of the new stock on offer.
Rio Tinto said today the 21-for-40 renounceable rights issue received acceptances for 142.15 million shares, against the total offer of 150.02 million, at $28.29 a piece.
The Australian leg of the total offer, which aims to raise $US15.2 billion in fresh capital, raised $4.02 billion and followed a similar deal in the UK.
The issue underwriters - Credit Suisse, JP Morgan and Macquarie Group - are now seeking subscribers for the remaining 7.87 million Australian shares by way of a bookbuild.
"Rio Tinto Limited will be requesting a trading halt to facilitate this process,'' the company said.
Its UK underwriters have already sold the last the remaining shares under the rights issue in the UK completed on Thursday.
Credit Suisse and JP Morgan Cazenove found buyers for 15.88 million new shares in Rio Tinto's London Stock Exchange listed entity at 2100 pence each.
When the UK issue closed, Rio had placed 96.97 per cent of the new shares offered at 1400 pence each.
Rio's major shareholder, Chinese government-owned Chinalco, took up its full entitlement in the UK offer.