Vale: The Competitor It Owns 6.71% OfThin moat

Mitsui & Co. (8031) — moat facet

Mitsui owns a slice of the Brazilian iron ore producer that competes with its own Australian mines.

Vale produces iron ore in Brazil and sells it into the same seaborne market as the Australian ventures Mitsui co-owns. Mitsui also owns 6.71% of Vale, and received ¥43.5 billion of dividends from it in the latest year1. Its share of Vale's production is counted at 22.5 million tonnes, more than its share of Robe River or the BHP venture23.

Change in iron ore profit, year to March 2026 (¥ bn)-14.9 (233.6 to 218.7)Australian iron ore+8.5 (35.0 to 43.5)Vale dividendFall shown as magnitude; Mitsui Integrated Report 2026
In the latest year the two moved in opposite directions.

A stake in a competitor is a hedge. If Brazilian ore gains share from Australian ore, Mitsui's Vale dividend should benefit while its Australian profit suffers; if the reverse, the reverse. What the stake cannot hedge is a fall in the price of iron ore itself, which hits both.

Mitsui's relationship with Vale goes back to 1971, when it joined MBR, a business that became part of Vale4.

The measure is the Vale dividend against the Australian iron ore contribution. The two moving in opposite directions would show the hedge working; moving together would show the price dominating.

Moat trajectory: Holding steady

The dividend recovered in the latest year while the Australian contribution fell.

The number that tests this moat
Reported
Vale share of equity iron ore
22.5 million tonnes of 63.8 million

The Brazilian share of Mitsui's ore; its dividend moves differently from the Australian profit.

Source: Mitsui & Co. Annual Securities Report 2026 ↗
References
  1. ReportedMitsui also owns 6.71% of Vale, and received ¥43.5 billion of dividends from it in the latest year.
    Mitsui & Co. Integrated Report 2026, data section - the major affiliates by segment with ownership and share of profit. — FY to March 2022-2026 · publ. 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedIts share of Vale's production is counted at 22.5 million tonnes, more than its share of Robe River or the BHP venture.
    Mitsui & Co., Annual Securities Report for the year to March 2026 (English) - company history, employees, share price history, total shareholder return, equity production, the revenue of the Singapore trading subsidiary, competition and the Arctic LNG 2 guarantees. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 12 August 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedIts share of Vale's production is counted at 22.5 million tonnes, more than its share of Robe River or the BHP venture.
    Mitsui & Co., results presentation for the year to March 2026 - producing assets with partners and stakes, LNG projects, affiliates and power contracts. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 1 May 2026 · source ↗
  4. ReportedMitsui's relationship with Vale goes back to 1971, when it joined MBR, a business that became part of Vale.
    Mitsui & Co., Annual Securities Report for the year to March 2026 (English) - company history, employees, share price history, total shareholder return, equity production, the revenue of the Singapore trading subsidiary, competition and the Arctic LNG 2 guarantees. — FY to March 2026 · publ. 12 August 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 24, 2026