Under Australian takeover rules a full takeover bid is required for any party grabbing more than a 20% stake in a company, but Citic is able to increase its stakeholding by 3% beyond that level every six months under “creep” provisions of the law.

Citic previously increased its stake by nearly 3% back in July last year.

Dow Jones Newswires said Talbot Group Investments still held around 1.5% of Macarthur, according to a “person familiar with the situation”.

Talbot sold a 10% stake in Macarthur last year to South Korean steelmaker Posco, cooling a possible takeover bid from the world’s largest steelmaker, ArcelorMittal, which has a 19.9% stake in the miner.

Macarthur shares closed 25c higher to $3.80.