Here in Australia, investors tend to obsess over the day in, day out performance of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). And fair enough too. The ASX 200 is our flagship Australian share market index, tracking the performance of the 200 largest public companies in the country. Nothing gives us a better look at how Australian shares are performing than the ASX 200.

But Aussies also like to look at other indexes around the world as well. There's the S&P 500 Index (INDEXSP: .INX), and the NASDAQ-100 (INDEXNASDAQ: NDX) indexes for American shares.

And there's also the FTSE 100 Index (INDEXFTSE: UKX). The FTSE 100 measures the performance of the largest 100 companies over in the United Kingdom. It's this latter index that we'll be taking a closer look at today.

The FTSE 100 is an interesting case. Because, unlike the ASX 200, or the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, the FTSE 100 has not yet surpassed its pre-COVID highs.

How has the FTSE 100 performed in 2021 compared to the ASX 200?

So just to recap, the ASX 200 is currently up 10.53% year to date in 2021, including today's movements so far. What of the FTSE 100? Well, the FTSE is currently up 6.03% in 2021 as of today. It's also up 12.18% over the past 12 months, again not quite matching the ASX 200's 21.23% over the same period.

So why this underperformance compared to the ASX 200?

Well, to answer that question, let's check out the shares that make up the majority of the FTA 100's weightings right now. This data comes from BetaShares, the provider of the ASX's only FTSE 100 exchange-traded fund (ETF), the BetaShares FTSE 100 ETF (ASX: F100):

How have FTSE 100 shares performed lately?

Ok, so some interesting observations here. Firstly, you might see some familiar names here with BHP and Rio Tinto. These actually reflect these Australian companies' London listings (they are also both listed over in the United States). So yes, these two companies contribute to the ASX 200, as well as the FTSE 100.

You might also notice the FTSE 100's largest holding is none other than AstraZeneca, a company that most of us would probably be familiar with these days for obvious reasons. AstraZeneca shares have had a rather successful 2021 so far, gaining close to 14% year to date. However, the shares are also still down 3.34% over the past 12 months.

GlaxoSmithKline is also a pharmaceutical company (it's the face behind brands like Panadol). GSK is up slightly year to date, but down 12.3% over the past year.

Other than that, we see the consumer staples giant Unilever here (the company behind Lynx deodorant, Dove soap, Omo washing powder, and Lipton tea). Unilever shares are down more than 9% in 2021 so far, and down more than 13% over the past year.

We also see the oil giants BP and Royal Dutch Shell. Like ASX energy shares, these companies have been struggling over the past year or so. Both are up in 2021 so far but BP remains down over the past 12 months.

We also have a bank in HSBC (which stands for Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation). HSBC shares are up moderately in both 2021 and over the past year.

Rounding it out we have a couple of 'sin stocks' in Diageo and British American Tobacco. Diageo is the giant alcohol company behind famous brands like Johnny Walker, Guinness and Tanqueray. While British American Tobacco makes cigarettes and tobacco products (including the Winfield brand).

Diageo has been a top FTSE 100 performer, putting on gains of almost 18% in 2021 so far, and 21.7% over the past 12 months. British American Tobacco is in the red over both periods.

Foolish takeaway

So it's pretty easy to see where some of the FTSE 100's lacklustre performance has come from in 2021 so far. Unlike the ASX 200, the FTSE 100 is not concentrated heavily on banks and mining companies, although they are present.

Shares like Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) and BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) have done most of the heavy lifting when it comes to the ASX 200's performance this year so far. In contrast, top FTSE shares like AstraZeneca and Unilever have performed far more poorly. As such, we can see what has made both indexes tick in recent times.

Still, every index tends to have its day in the sun, so who knows what the future might hold for both the FTSE 100 and the ASX 200.

The post How is the ASX 200 performing against the FTSE 100 in 2021? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) shares are on the rise following news the company's chair Simon Thompson will leave the board at this year's annual general meetings.

At the time of writing, the ASX Rio Tinto share price has climbed 2.09% to $129.84.

The mining giant revealed the move before market open on Wednesday, with the senior directors of Rio Tinto Limited and Rio Tinto plc (LON: RIO) to lead a search for a new chair.

Thompson had faced a torrent of public and shareholder pressure over the past eight months for his handling of the Juukan Gorge disaster.

Rio Tinto destroyed the historically and culturally significant Western Australia site in May, despite protests from Indigenous groups and archaeologists.

The company later defended the explosion, citing that it had not acted illegally and was not blaming any individuals for the decision.

Following shareholder lobbying, the chief executive and two senior executives departed Rio Tinto, albeit with golden handshakes so large they would never need to work again.

Many shareholders and commentators also called for Thompson's head, but he had resisted until now.

The outgoing chair on Wednesday acknowledged the events of the past few months.

"The tragic events at Juukan Gorge are a source of personal sadness and deep regret, as well as being a clear breach of our values as a company," Thompson said.

"Successes were overshadowed by the destruction of the Juukan Gorge rock shelters at the Brockman 4 operations in Australia and, as chairman, I am ultimately accountable for the failings that led to this tragic event."

Australian Council of Superannuation Investors chief executive Louise Davidson welcomed Thompson's departure.

"Today's announcement is a step towards the company rebuilding relationships with traditional owners," she said.

"Today's announcement means the board can be renewed. In particular, investors would like to see the board increase its connection with Australian operations and communities, as well as an increase in mining experience."

Rio share price has gone gangbusters

Thanks to rising commodity prices, The ASX Rio Tinto share price has risen by more than 46% in the past year. In London, the stock has gained in excess of 68%.

Overnight, London Rio shares were up 2.11%.

The company also announced Wednesday that board member Michael L'Estrange would retire at the AGMs, citing health reasons.

"I wish [CEO] Jakob and the new executive well for the future as they build on Rio Tinto's many strengths and continue to implement the critical changes aimed at ensuring that an occurrence such as the destruction of the Juukan Gorge rock shelters never happens again," he said.

The post 'Deep regret': Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) share price climbs as chair quits appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The iron ore price is on a lot of lips right now, including ours. Yesterday, we were talking about how iron ore was trading at a nine-year high. Today, we're telling you about the overnight price crash which puts the share prices of miners such as BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) and Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) under a cloud.

Year-over-year, the price has risen around 70%. So why does it seem like everyone's talking about the iron ore price?

China likes making steel

At the start of 2020, the World Steel Association (worldsteel) reported that as of 2019, China was producing more than half of the world's crude steel. A few days ago, worldsteel announced that China's crude steel production has increased 8%, comparing November 2019 to November 2020.

Producing steel doesn't exclusively involve iron ore either, right? It also involves coal, for example.

According to the World Coal Association, "Global steel production is dependent on coal. 70% of the steel produced uses coal."

Australia likes selling China iron ore, as well as coal

A couple of days ago, Treasury was cheering about the iron ore price as the mid-year economic and fiscal outlook approached. That's because while COVID-19 continues to ravage other industries, mining has managed to carry the flag.

Discussing Australia's trade relationship with China back in September, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) noted, "The overall value and growth in goods exported to China in recent years has been driven by exports of resource commodities, in particular metalliferous ores (mostly iron ore), and coal."

Exporting iron ore and coal are good for the Australian economy, point blank. So when the price of either starts going crazy, people are going to talk about it.

What lies ahead for the iron ore price?

Considering the monstrous gains that the iron ore price has experienced during 2020, a correction could be approaching. Although, unless Brazil can come back from the landslide suffered this week, pressure might remain on prices as we gear up for the new year.

The Financial Review recently pointed out that in addition to consuming more than half of the global iron ore supply, China "was the buyer of 68 tonnes in every 100 tonnes of Australian production" last financial year.

As long as the iron ore price holds such a heavy impact on the Australian economy, you can bet that people will keep talking about it. 

The post Why is everyone talking about the iron ore price? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

A group that manages $14 trillion worth of investments has put Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) and other mining companies on notice.

In a letter sent on Thursday, the group warned that it required confidence in how the companies liaised with Indigenous land owners to manage risk for its long-term investments.

The correspondence came after Rio Tinto in May blew up Juukan Gorge in Western Australia, which displayed historical and cultural evidence of human habitation going back 46,000 years.

"The recent tragic and irreversible destruction of First Nations sites of cultural and archaeological significance in the Juukan Gorge, in Australia, highlights the consequences for communities, companies and investors when relations with communities are not adequately managed," the letter reads. 

"This in turn calls into question the social license of a company to operate."

Who sent the letter?

The investors' group included international giants like the Church of England Pensions Board, AXA IM and Council of Ethics for the Swedish National Pension Funds. Local signatories included large superannuation funds like HESTA, Australian Super and Cbus.

ASX-listed recipients included Rio Tinto, BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) and Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM).

Church of England Pensions Board ethics & engagement director Adam Matthews said each time an adverse event happens, it casts a shadow over the entire industry.

"As with the issue of tailings dam safety a single event has exposed a systemic issue across the mining sector."

HESTA chief Debby Blakey said the Juukan Gorge tragedy was "a wake-up call" for investors small and large.

"It's critical companies and investors who are making long-term decisions manage risks associated with indigenous heritage protection appropriately," she said. 

"Not only so we can mitigate financial risk for our members' investments, but also so we can ensure there are fair and sustainable outcomes for indigenous communities and companies."

Failure to protect culturally significant sites is a "material investment risk", said Australian Council of Superannuation Investors chief Louise Davidson.

"The events of Juukan Gorge have identified a significant failing in the way Rio Tinto managed its relationship with traditional owners," she said.

"We want to understand how companies across the industry are managing these risks and working to ensure that a disaster like the Juukan Gorge never happens again."

Rio Tinto initially stripped $7 million of bonuses from 3 executives. But after investor pressure all 3 departed the company, albeit with golden handshakes worth millions of dollars.

The post $14 trillion investor alliance warns Aussie mining companies appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.