Rio Tinto sells down stake in aluminum products maker

Nov 18 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto Ltd (Xetra: 855018 - news) , one of the world's top mining companies, has sold most of its stake in aluminum products maker Constellium NV for about $330 million, according to a regulatory filing on Monday.

Rio which had a 28 percent stake, sold 19,316,355 shares of Constellium on Nov. 14 at a price of $17 per share, less the underwriting discount. It retained a 9.22 percent stake, or some 9,597,570 shares, according to the filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Constellium, which makes aluminum products for the aerospace, packaging and automotive industries, was spun out from assets that Rio acquired as part its $38 billion takeover of Alcan Inc in 2007.

That deal, made at the peak of the aluminum market, has led to some $30 billion in writedowns, with Rio booking losses as demand for the metal slumped and Chinese output soared.

The mining giant has since sold off or idled numerous underperforming aluminum assets, though it scrapped an effort to sell its loss-making Pacific Aluminium business in August, citing poor market conditions.

Shares of Constellium, which went public in May, were down 0.14 percent at $20.14 on the New York Stock Exchange on Monday afternoon.