On Wednesday, Brazil's iron ore producers' and exporters' association Sinferbase reported that 12.376 million metric tons were exported from Brazil in January, down from 19.7 million a year earlier, due to heavy rainfall during the month. Vale was forced to declare force majeure for 13 days on account of the rainfall. The rain particularly interrupted production in the Minas Gerais and Para states.
Expectedly, Vale exported the bulk over Brazil's overall exports in January, with 12.3 million tons--down from 18.1 million in January 2011. Samarco exported 65,000 tons--Samarco is a joint venture between BHP Billiton and Vale--while fellow miner MMX exported no iron ore in January.