Rio de Janeiro: Shares in Brazilian oil giant Petrobras falls sharply

Rio de Janeiro, Feb 19 (AFP/APP): Shares in Brazilian oil giant Petrobras fell sharply Friday following comments from President Jair Bolsonaro that there would be changes in the state-owned company.

Ordinary shares had fallen 7.1 percent by 1700 GMT while preference shares were down by 5.7 percent. “There will be changes in Petrobras,” the far-right leader announced following several hikes in fuel prices by the company. “We will never interfere in this great company and its pricing policy.

But the people cannot be surprised by certain readjustments,” added Bolsonaro at the inauguration of a canal in northeastern Pernambuco state. On Thursday night during his weekly internet program he said: “Something will happen at Petrobras in the coming days. We have to change something, and we will.” Petrobras has hiked fuel prices four times since the start of the year — the last time being on Thursday — and accumulated a 35 percent rise in less than two months.

The price of gas cannisters, which are used by many poor people, have also rocketed this year, piling on more misery to those already worst affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Leftist former president Dilma Rousseff froze fuel prices several times in 2014 and 2015 despite the price of oil barrels increasing at the time.