BHP Billiton Says Era of Free-Spending Iron Companies is Over

BHP Billiton says the era of iron ore freely spending money on projects is over as companies try to deal with the fallout of iron ore prices.

According to Bloomberg:

BHP and rivals Rio Tinto Group and Vale SA (VALE) are flooding the global iron ore market after a $120 billion spending spree to boost the capacity of their mines from Australia to Brazil.

Now prices have slumped to the lowest in more than five years as surging supply coincides with a slowdown in China, the world’s biggest consumer.

Andrew Mackenzie, BHP CEO, said:

Our company has been very clear that the time for massive expansions of iron ore are over.