Vale Q1 Iron Ore Output Falls 4.5% Amid Heavy Rains, Copper And Nickel Output Gain

VALE S.A. (NYSE:VALE) reported the first-quarter FY25 production and sales performance on Tuesday.

The company clocked iron ore production of 67.7 million tonnes (Mt), which was down 4.5% year over year (Y/Y), with production in the Northern System constrained by heavy rainfall.

Pellet production declined 15% Y/Y to 7.2 Mt primarily due to reduced availability of pellet feed in the quarter.

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In the first quarter, Vale's iron ore sales increased 3.6% Y/Y to 66.1 million tonnes, aided by the sale of advanced inventories built-up in previous quarters.

The average realized price for iron ore fines was $90.8 per tonne (-9.8% Y/Y), primarily due to lower premium levels.

Similarly, the average pellet price declined 18.1% year over year to $140.8 per tonne, reflecting weaker contractual premiums during the quarter.

Meanwhile, Iron ore sales increased 4% year over year to 66.1 Mt, driven by an agile supply chain and strategic use of inventories.

Also, Copper production rose 11% Y/Y to 90.9 kt, with a strong performance from Salobo, Sossego, and Voisey's Bay thanks to the Salobo 3 and Voisey's Bay underground expansions.

Additionally, Nickel production surged 11% year over year to 43.9 kt, led by increased production at Onça Puma and solid results from Canadian operations, further enhanced by VBME's progress.

In February, Vale reported fourth-quarter net operating revenue decline of 22% Y/Y to $10.124 billion, beating the consensus of $10.117 billion.

Investors can gain exposure to the stock via VanEck Steel ETF (NYSE:SLX) and iShares Latin America 40 ETF (NYSE:ILF).

Price Action: VALE shares are up 0.22% at $9.15 premarket at the last check Wednesday.

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