OREANDA-NEWS. Brazil's Vale SA, the world's second-largest mining company, said on Thursday that its plan to carry iron ore to Asian buyers via a fleet of super-large ships known as Valemaxes had made substantial advances in the past weeks.

On a call with analysts after the company released its first-quarter earnings, Vale's head of ferrous metals, Jose Carlos Martins, said the company had berthed its first Valemax ship in China, though it was not fully laden with ore.

He added that Vale opened a new floating distribution station in the Philippines and was working to open new ports in Japan and South Korea.