Rio Tinto is a global diversified miner. Iron ore is its major commodity, with lesser contributions from copper and aluminum. Lithium, diamonds, gold, and industrial minerals are more minor contributors. The 1995 merger of RTZ and CRA, via a dual-listed structure, created the present-day company. The two operate as a single business entity, with shareholders in each company having equivalent economic and voting rights. Major assets included the Pilbara iron ore operations, a 30% stake in the Escondida copper mine, 66%-ownership of the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia, the Weipa and Gove bauxite mines in Australia, and six hydro-powered aluminum smelters in Canada.

U.S. stocks are trading near record highs - but despite the strong performance, they are being bested by global emerging stocks. A leading industrialized global stock market index, the ETF EAFE (EFA), is up 6% year to date, while the leading emerging market ETF (EEM) has gained 17%. The S&P 500 is no slacker, up 6% year to date, but still below the global emerging stocks. With continued worries over the state of the U.S. economy and some talk of stagflation, global stocks, and especially those that pay dividends, are an option for investors. The lagging U.S. markets represent a change from the recent record. Over the past five years, the S&P 500 has advanced 70% compared to a 28% gain in EAFE and a 14% gain in EEM. But the underperformance has given global stocks a valuation advantage, particularly in the area of dividends. Consider that the EAFE dividend yield of 3.35% is roughly 225 basis points higher than the comparable S&P 500 dividend yield. We think global dividend stocks continue to offer opportunity. In our view, investing in international income stocks is one way to increase portfolio diversification while reducing sensitivity to volatile U.S interest rates. That said, investing in overseas stocks carries its own set of risks, including the impact of currency exchange and geopolitical turmoil. But there are also a number of positives in this asset class for U.S. investors, including a wide selection of companies that pay dividends, robust industry diversification, and, as we have mentioned, higher yields and lower valuations. We used the sort function in the Argus screening tool using these criteria: stocks must carry and Argus BUY rating, trading just below their 52-week high, and with a dividend yield. The following is the resultant list and offers diversity in sectors and countries.

Rio Tinto is a leading global mining and metals group. The company's primary product groups are iron ore, aluminum, copper, and diamonds & minerals. The company is based in London. It has approximately 57,000 employees.

This is one of the busiest weeks of the year on Wall Street. There's a Fed rate meeting, which is also the last meeting with current-but-departing Chairman Jerome Powell. As well, five of the Mag7 are due to report earnings and there's a lot of economic data coming out (including updated on GDP and inflation). Last week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were essentially flat, while the Nasdaq gained 1.5%. Year to date, all three indices are in positive territory. The Dow is up 2%, the S&P 500 is higher by 5%, and the Nasdaq is up 7%. On the earnings calendar, about 850 public companies are reporting this week. Highlights include Verizon on Monday; Visa, Coca-Cola, Novartis, Seagate Technology, Starbucks, and UPS on Tuesday; Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta Platforms on Wednesday; Apple, Eli Lilly, Merck, and Caterpillar on Thursday; and Exxon Mobil and Chevron on Friday. Turning to the economic calendar, the Case-Shiller Home Price Index will be reported on Tuesday; the Federal Reserve rate decision comes on Wednesday (followed by a final press conference hosted by Chairman Powell); and the Personal Consumption Expenditures Index inflation indicator and an update on GDP hit the tape on Thursday. The impact of the war is showing up in economic forecasts. Gas prices have been elevated, but fell eight cents last week and are now at an average of $4.04 per gallon for regular gas. The Atlanta Fed GDPNow forecast is now calling for 1.2% growth in 1Q, down from 3.0% about a month ago. The Cleveland Fed Inflation Nowcast forecast is at 3.6% for CPI in April, up from the 3.3% print in March. Mortgage rates moved lower last week, down seven basis points, with the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at 6.23%, according to FreddieMac. For the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting this week, odds are at zero for a rate move. President Trump's nominee to be the next Fed chairman, Kevin Warsh, testified before Congress last week as he continues to move through the formal approval process. Of note, the controversial DOJ investigation into Chairman Powell was dropped. His term as Chairman expires on May 15, though he will remain on the committee. Taking a deeper dive into year-to date performance, a leading industrialized global stock market index, the ETF EFA, is up 5% year to date, while the leading emerging market ETF (EEM) is up 16%. U.S. growth stocks are flat year to date when looking at ETF IWF, and value stocks (IWD) are up 7%. Crude oil has pulled back from its high of $110 on April 7. On Friday, it was at $94 per barrel, still up 62% for the year. In other asset classes for the year to date, AGG bonds are flat, gold is up 8%, and Bitcoin is down 11%. The U.S. dollar is flat, tracking DXY. The VIX Volatility Index was about 19 on Friday, below its historical average of 20. Turning to sector performance, the list from first to worst so far in 2026, as of March 31, is Energy (+27%), Materials (+14%), Industrials (+11%), Real Estate (+10%), Utilities (+9%), Consumer Staples (+9%), Information Technology (+8%), Communication Services (+5%), Consumer Discretionary (+2%), Financials (-5%), and Healthcare (-6%). By comparison, the S&P 500 is up 5% year to date.