THE DAILY CHART: Why Twiggy has gone quiet

In the immediate aftermath of the revised minerals resource rent tax, Fortescue's Andrew Forrest simply reiterated that he remained unimpressed that the government negotiated exclusively with the big three miners and described the new deal as having only a "reasonable framework" for future discussions. Since then he's calmed down. It could be because he owes BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata an enormous debt of gratitude because they've negotiated a deal from which Fortescue appears to be one of the largest beneficiaries.

According to research from Citi, the net present values (NPV) of many miners improves considerably under the new deal, from the diversified giants to specialised iron ore and coal producers, including the like of Fortescue. During the RSPT debate it was widely acknowledged that Fortescue was one of the biggest losers under the RSPT, which is why 'Twiggy' made so much noise. But, as illustrated, under the MRRT, which has focused on iron ore and coal, Fortescue's NPV no longer loses 25 per cent but only 2-3 per cent, explaining why Forrest has calmed down.