Canadian miner Teck Resources Ltd reported a 246.8% jump in first-quarter adjusted profit on Wednesday, driven by higher copper prices as COVID-19 vaccine rollouts boosted investment demand for raw materials.

Average price realized for copper rose 54% to $3.92 per pound in the first quarter, while sales stood at 67,000 tonnes compared with 73,000 tonnes a year earlier.

Production at Teck Resources' steelmaking coal operations rose 20% to 5.9 million tonnes in the first quarter.

Average price realized for steelmaking coal was flat at $131 per tonne, while sales stood at 6.2 million tonnes compared with 5.7 million tonnes a year earlier.

Net adjusted income rose to C$326 million ($262.88 million), or 61 Canadian cents per share, in the first quarter ended March 31, from C$94 million, or 17 Canadian cents per share, a year earlier.

Analysts were expecting a profit of 62 Canadian cents, according to Refinitiv IBES data.