Deals
‘Quiet’ Ferreira Takes Over at Vale as Conflict Hurts Stock
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After Murilo Ferreira helped Vale SA win a takeover battle for Canadian miner Inco Ltd. in 2006, his boss, Chief Executive Officer Roger Agnelli, promoted him to head the unit and build a global nickel business from Toronto.
Nickel output rose to a record by 2008, in part because Ferreira boosted relations with local unions and took a consensus-building approach that impressed fellow executives and labor representatives such as United Steelworkers Union leader Leo Gerard. Those attributes have now helped him win the top job at Rio de Janeiro-based Vale, after Brazil’s government ousted Agnelli in a dispute over its strategy and investments.