Rio Tinto moving away from benchmark iron ore sales contracts

Miner Rio Tinto (RIO.L) will not agree any more traditional iron ore contracts on....

Miner Rio Tinto (RIO.L) will not agree any more traditional iron ore contracts on a benchmark basis and plans a "significant" increase in spot market sales next year, a senior executive told Reuters on Thursday."We’re not planning to place more tonnes on the traditional long-term contract basis," Sam Walsh, Chief Executive Iron Ore at Rio (RIO.AX) told Reuters in an interview. "We are looking at hybrid contracts or spot-based contracts going forward.""Clearly, I would expect our spot volume will increase next year," Walsh said. He declined to give an exact amount for the increase but said it would be "significant".Under the traditional benchmark system, steelmakers and big iron ore miners agree on an annual price rise. However, due to the price swings in the spot market and volatile freight rates, the system has lost its grip on the market.(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk and Eric Onstad; editing by Christopher Johnson