Brazilian mining giant Vale in the third quarter this year posted the third-biggest profit among publicly traded companies in Latin America and US, according to a survey published Wednesday by Brazilian consulting firm Economática, Vale reported.
Vale, the world's second-largest miner and the No. 1 iron ore producer, posted a $6.229 billion net profit for July through September. It was behind only AT&T ($12.339 billion) and Exxon Mobil ($7.35 billion). Brazilian government-controlled oil company Petrobras ranked fifth, with third quarter earnings of $5.056 billion. In the third quarter of 2009, Petrobras had ranked second among 2,335 companies surveyed by Economática, while Vale was in 22nd position.