Mr Marius Kloppers CEO of BHP Billiton Limited said that a slide in demand for raw materials will not undermine its bid for rival Rio Tinto. Decreased demand will mean lower prices for those raw materials, but BHP said that the down cycle does not undermine its proposed USD 160 billion buyout of rival Rio Tinto.

Mr Kloppers said that he expects European regulators will resume their review of the deal within weeks. The regulators had put their scrutiny of the deal on hold until BHP could provide more data supporting its argument for a combination.

He predicted that the acquisition could still close by the beginning of 2009. BHP had previously said that the deal could be done by the end of 2008.

Calling the proposed acquisition a deal for all seasons, Mr Kloppers said that high transportation and energy costs in a weak market make cost savings all the more important and noted that the two companies have many proximate operations.

Moreover, Mr Kloppers said that the weak market and credit crunch have dried up funding for smaller projects. As a result, not as much new capacity as originally anticipated is being added, constraining supply. He also said that Australian regulators are looking into whether steel prices would rise in Australia if the deal is approved.

BHP plans to take its offer directly to Rio Tinto shareholders, assuming it wins regulatory approvals. To succeed, the deal would need acceptances from a majority of Rio Tinto's shares.