Vale Exec: Not Concerned About Fall In Iron-Ore Prices

MANJUNG, Malaysia, Oct 08, 2011 (Dow Jones) -- Brazilian mining giant Vale SA (VALE, VALE5.BR) isn't worried about a decline in iron-ore prices despite a decline in copper prices recently, a company executive said Saturday.

"We aren't concerned about the behavior of [iron-ore] prices as we follow the market...We are not price makers, we are price followers," Jose Carlos Martins, executive director at Vale, told reporters on the sidelines of a groundbreaking ceremony for the company's $1.3 billion iron-ore distribution center in Perak state.

"We will look at the market and see how it behaves in the next two to three months," he said.

Martins also said the iron-ore giant is open to switching its iron-ore settlements from dollars to the Chinese currency as China is a huge importer of the raw material for steelmaking, although any decision to change Vale's settlement currency from the dollar to Chinese yuan would depend on how convertible the yuan is.

"Any decision by Chinese policymakers to make the yuan more convertible is very welcomed," Martins said.