Rio Tinto vs Macquarie Bank

In September, there was a race between Rio Tinto (RIO.AX) and Macquarie Bank (MBL.AX) as to which stock would become the first to $100 and stay there. Both were at the mid $90 mark, had shown good fundamentals and were rising on good technical data.

Two months on, Macquarie sits at a touch over $81. It fell as the sub-prime mortgage sector, to which Macquarie Bank was heavily exposed to, was a catalyst to a global credit crunch and the once mighty investment bank sub-sector was starting to show weakness.

Rio Tinto on the other hand has risen and risen. Strong demand globally for resources, increased resource prices and a strong Australian Dollar have contributed to its bullish run. Yesterday, BHP Billiton (BHP.AX) made a firm offer to Rio Tinto to create a resources behemoth. This news sent shares soaring to $131 today and climbing.

In two months, two strong Australian companies were looking to crack $100 per share. Now, because of differing fortunes there is $50 difference in price. How quickly the market changes.

Has there been any investors, that have positively or negatively been affected by either Rio Tinto or Macquarie Bank in recent months?