27 Apr 2012

Iron ore company profit down

7:54 am on 27 April 2012

Vale, the world's largest iron ore miner, says its quarterly profit fell by nearly half because rains limited exports, prices for its main products fell and spending on new mining projects rose.

The Brazilian company says its profit fell 44% to $US3.8 billion.

Net revenue fell 16% to $US11 billion.