São Paulo – Brazilian oil company Petrobras had a trade balance surplus of US$ 2.874 billion between exports and imports last year. In terms of volume, the surplus was 156,000 barrels a day. The figures, disclosed today (29) by the company, do not include the area of gas, neither natural, liquefied nor nitrogenised.
According to company information, the positive balance was mainly due to the 4.8% growth in the volume of oil and oil products exported. Shipments averaged 705,000 barrels of oil a day in 2009.
The expansion in Brazilian production of oil and the 23% reduction in the total of oil products imported, like diesel oil, also contributed to the surplus.
With the greater production of diesel oil by Petrobras, Brazilian imports of the fuel dropped 43.03% on average in 2009, in comparison with 2008.
The trade balance surplus in the fourth quarter of 2009, calculated based on imports of oil and oil products, was US$ 1.8 billion, which represented growth of US$ 194 million over the same period in 2008.
*Translated by Mark Ament
