The Brazilian oil company Petrobras reduced, in 2022, oil sales to China from 56 percent of total exports to 42 percent, while increasing volumes destined for Europe, from 14 to 26 percent.
According to a report on the results of the first quarter of this year, the Brazilian state-owned company reported that, over the last few years, it has been implementing a “constant search for global opportunities and development of new customers”. decisive for it to also change the flow of exports, increasing the value of sales.
Although it does not mention the war in Ukraine in the report, the change in the destination of Petrobras oil exports followed the reorganization of the global markets for crude oil and fuels that took place after the beginning of the conflict that started in February 2022.
With the embargoes, Russian oil, previously largely purchased by Europe, began to be redirected at a discount to Asian markets, such as China and India.
In this context, other producing countries, such as Brazil and the Middle East, reduced shipments to China and other Asian countries and began to send more oil to Europe.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, the continent accounted for 29 percent of Petrobras’ exports.
Petrobras’ oil exports to the United States of America, which represented 7 percent of the total at the end of last year, returned to the 2 percent level in the first three months of this year, in line with the 3 percent recorded in early 2022.
Derivatives
With regard to the export of oil products from Petrobras, sales to Singapore and other countries have grown, to the detriment of the participation of the United States, Europe and the Caribbean.
Exports of fuel and other derivatives to Singapore represented 59 percent of the total at the beginning of last year, reaching 70 percent in the last quarter of 2022 and 63 percent in the first quarter of this year.
Exports to the US fell from 28 to 18 percent of Petrobras’ total sales in one year.
