The company shipped 46.4 million tonnes in its second quarter, up nine per cent on the December quarter last financial year, lifting its first-half shipments to a record 88.6 megatonnes.

Fortescue said its costs were lower, iron ore shipments were higher and average realised revenues were also up.

The miner now expects to achieve the top end of its targeted export range for the year, which is between 170 million and 175 million tonnes, chief executive Elizabeth Gaines said.

RBC Capital Markets said it was a stronger result than they had expected.

They expect iron ore prices to remain high through the first half of this calendar year before declining in the second half.

“However, in the interim we expect the stock will remain an attractive proposition for those investors seeking iron ore exposure,” RBC’s mining team wrote on Thursday.

The company’s shares were down 27c, or 2.34  per cent, at $11.26 at 1330 AEDT.

–AAP