It was BHP Billiton Ltd. which first commented on allegations of iron ore manipulation. Vale SA and Rio Tinto Plc have not yet commented the statement of China's National Development and Reform Commission. According to a BHP Billiton's statement released on the 7 th of March, the company underlined that it tried to operate its assets at its full capacity, adding that it produced record volumes of the much desired material in the July – December 2012 period. To top it all, BHP Billiton stated that it sold all of iron ore produced at the time.