en.Wedoany.com Reported - Brazilian miner Vale reported second-quarter earnings on Thursday, with net profit down 35% year-on-year, while raising the lower end of its 2026 copper and nickel production outlook range and announcing a new share buyback program.

Vale is one of the world's largest iron ore producers. In the April-June quarter, the company posted net profit of $1.38 billion, below the $1.85 billion expected by analysts in an LSEG survey, impacted by financial effects such as derivatives and taxes.

Due to a stronger Brazilian real and higher oil prices, Vale raised its full-year iron ore cash cost and production cost forecast by 11% based on the midpoint.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) came in at $3.68 billion, up 9% year-on-year but below the LSEG estimate of $3.83 billion. Excluding certain non-recurring items, core earnings were $4.07 billion, above analyst expectations.

Despite the profit decline, analysts at JPMorgan and Santander welcomed the higher-than-expected core earnings, which could signal a positive reaction in the share price on Friday.

Net revenue rose 19% during the period to $10.5 billion, roughly in line with the expected $10.47 billion. The growth was driven by Vale's highest second-quarter output since 2018, the year before a dam collapse in Brumadinho, Brazil, which killed around 270 people and triggered a safety review of the company's projects.

On shareholder returns, Vale plans to buy back up to 100 million shares over 18 months and pay $1.7 billion to shareholders through dividends and interest on equity.

On the production outlook, the company expects 2026 copper output to be between 360,000 and 380,000 metric tons, with the lower end of the range raised by 10,000 tons from its previous forecast. For nickel, it expects output this year to be between 185,000 and 200,000 tons, also raising the lower end of the range by 10,000 tons.