“You’re playing with the big boys,” BHP chairman tells China

Acknowledging that they and other iron-ore producers had at times upset their major customer China,  BHP Billiton has said that Beijing realised it had “to play with the boys”. In a parting shot at Chinese anger over high iron ore prices and over BHP’s plans for a $116-billion iron-ore joint venture with rival Rio Tinto, outgoing BHP chairman Don Argus said China needed to get over any hostility.

“I don’t know what creates the hostility. I can remember in 2005 people were hostile when we increased the iron ore prices 70%,” he told reporters.  Argus then echoed comments by Australia’s Trade Minister Simon Crean, saying China should play by international rules. “If you’re going to play in this game, then you’ve got to play with the boys -- and they know that,” Argus added.

Argus said BHP’s China business continued normally, despite strained ties between Australia and China after the arrest of four Rio staff in Shanghai on commercial-espionage allegations. BHP and Rio scrapped a plan to jointly market up to 15% of their combined production in a move that was widely seen as an effort to allay concerns among Chinese customers and the European Union.

(These items have been taken from
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