Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) growth in core profits in the half-year almost matched market expectations, says miner reported Tuesday, with copper production and prices rising helped to balance slightly lower production and prices in the dominant iron ore industry.

Rio (RIO) reported core earnings of $5.75 billion in the six months to June 30, up 1.8% from the same period a year earlier and matching Visible Alpha analysts’ consensus estimate of $5.79 billion.

Average realised prices in the first half of the year for Rio’s (RIO) flagship Pilbara iron ore fell slightly to $97.30/metric tonne from $98.60/metric tonne a year earlier.

Rio’s (RIO) copper equivalent production is on track to grow by ~2% year-on-year, CEO Jakob Stausholm said, with the company targeting ~3% compound annual growth from 2024 to 2028 from ongoing operations and projects.

“We see that China’s economy is growing by +/- 5% and that is very good for commodity markets. You also see the U.S. growing. Not fantastically, but absolutely supporting good markets and good demand for our products,” Stausholm told media, according to Reuters.

Rio (RIO) said its net debt totaled $5.1 billion, near the high end of analyst estimates, while free cash flow came in at $2.8 billion.

The company declared an interim dividend of $1.77 per share, which it said represented 50% of core earnings, in line with its policy and typical mid-year payouts in recent years.