Vale Balance-Sheet Cleanup Heralds Record Loss: Corporate Brazil

Vale SA, the world’s largest iron-ore producer, probably lost money for the first time in a decade in the fourth quarter after Chief Executive Officer Murilo Ferreira dropped unprofitable projects and wrote down assets.

The Rio de Janeiro-based miner will report tomorrow a record loss of $1.22 billion for the three months ended Dec. 31 under U.S. accounting standards, according to the average of five analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. That would mark the first loss since the third quarter of 2002, when Vale lost $150 million after a currency slump boosted debt costs.