Banco Santander SA said that Brazil will export a record amount of iron ore this year as companies such as Vale SA boost shipments to help satisfy rising demand for the steelmaking ingredient from China.
Mr Felipe Reis analyst of Santander said that Brazil is likely to surpass the record 281.6 million tonnes of ore shipped in 2008 after exporting 30.2 million tonnes last month 18% increase from a year earlier. Iron ore shipments should remain strong over the next couple of months, leading to the best year ever in terms of Brazilian exports of the commodity.
The analysts said that Rio de Janeiro based Vale will continue to enjoy strong earnings momentum during this quarter and through 2011. The company is Santander’s top pick among Brazilian metals and mining companies.