Petroleo Brasileiro SA, or Petrobras, posted late Friday a first-quarter net profit of 10.99 billion Brazilian reals (USD 6.72 billion), up 42 percent from BRL 7.73 billion in the same quarter a year ago, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The net profit was above the BRL 9.98 billion median forecast of analysts, and also topped the previous record quarterly profit of BRL 10.6 billion set in the last quarter of 2010.
Growing crude oil production and rising domestic fuel consumption combined with higher oil prices pushed Petrobras' first-quarter earnings past year-on-year gains posted by rivals Chevron Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell PLC, which saw net profits climb 36 percent and 30 percent, respectively. Exxon Mobil Corp., meanwhile, posted a stunning 69 percent surge in net profits.
The uprisings across the key oil-producing regions of North Africa and the Middle East have led to a hike in international crude oil prices in the first quarter, pumping up profits for global oil companies.
North Sea Brent crude, which Petrobras uses as its benchmark, was up 38 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, Petrobras said.
The rise "elevated revenues from exports as well as production and sales of our international segment," the company said in a statement.
There has not yet been a release of the company's 2011-2015 investment plan as anticipated by the market.
Analysts expect Petrobras to announce investments of between USD 250 billion and USD 260 billion for the five-year period, topping the USD 224 billion in the 2010-2014 plan.
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