Vale, the Brazilian miner, said it maintained a "positive" long-term outlook for iron ore and nickel prices, based on better-than-expected quarterly earnings.
"We remain positive on the outlook for iron ore given the recovery in the global economy," Vale said in late November after iron ore prices plunged on oversupply concerns and weak steel demand. They have since recouped some of their losses.
The company, once the world's largest producer of raw materials for steel, said its fourth-quarter net income nearly doubled to 5.4bn. The company said the increase was mainly due to the impact of the reclassification of accumulated foreign exchange gains.
Las ganancias financieras se vieron parcialmente contrarrestadas por mayores costos relacionados con el desastre de la presa de Brumadinho, como 1700 millones adicionales asignados a las presas aguas arriba.
Vale's earnings were hurt by a fall in iron ore prices last year, but nickel has been rising for the past few years and the miner is betting that demand for the metal used in electric cars will continue to grow.
Este crecimiento beneficiará a la química de las baterías con alto-níquel debido a su mayor densidad de energía, una dinámica de la que depende especialmente la cadena de suministro de América del Norte.
