China Minmetals Corp, the country's largest metal trader, is considering putting all of its acquired overseas mineral assets into its recently acquired Australian mining firm OZ Minerals Ltd if the deal goes through, to consolidate its overseas mineral assets, its President Zhou Zhongshu said on Friday in an interview in Beijing.

China Minmetals Corp plans to buy OZ Minerals Ltd for A$2.6 billion (US$1.7 billion) in cash, it announced last month.

Zhou said the Oz deal, scheduled for completion in June, has been approved by the Australian company's board but has yet to get the go-ahead from its shareholders and Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board.

(China Daily March 6, 2009)