The company said on Friday its board had approved a payment of 2.4075 reias per share, being 1.4102 per share in the form of dividends and 0.9973 per share in the form of interest on capital.

The interim dividend was ahead of expectations and implied an 8% yield on an annualised basis, BMO analyst Edward Sterck reportedly told Bloomberg.

Vale had flagged a resumption of dividends mid-year.

"I think it's important that we resumed the policy because we are confident with our business," CEO Eduardo de Salles Bartolomeo said in a second quarter earnings call in July.

The company had paid a 1.41 reais dividend, declared in December 2019, in August.

The latest dividend was scheduled for payment on September 30, Vale said.

Executives also confirmed mid-year the company was planning another dividend for March 2021, related to its second-half performance.

Vale was named in a list of preferred mining companies by Morgan Stanley in July, which said the stock was "too cheap to ignore" and pointed to two near-term catalysts, being the settlement of a comprehensive agreement with Brazil authorities over its dam disasters and the reinstatement of dividend payments. 

Vale shares are trading near a one-year high.

They closed up 5.84% in Brazil and 5.32% in New York on Friday and the company is capitalised about US$62 billion.