Petrobras reported record exports of some 814,000 barrels of oil per day in the third quarter, as production surged and 11 wells started operating, the firm said on Friday.
That was a 36 per cent increase in oil exports compared to the same period of last year. China was the destination for 53 per cent of the firm's shipments in the period, up 14 percentage points from a year ago.
Asia, excluding China, received 19 per cent of Petrobras' oil exports, a rise of five percentage points, while the share that went to the United States and Europe fell by half to three and 15 per cent respectively.
Lower demand from the US as sales increased to India and South Korea factored in the change, Petrobras said in its output and sales report.
Total exports by the Brazilian company, including gas and oil derivatives, reached 1.04 million barrels, up 29 per cent when compared to the July-September period of last year.
Petrobras produced 2.52 million bpd of oil in Brazil in the quarter, up about 18 per cent. Beyond the new 11 wells, the firm said the output increase came from a floating production vessel reaching peak production, another increasing capacity and four ramping up.
The firm's total oil, gas and gas liquids production stood at 3.14 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, an almost 17 per cent jump year-over-year.
Total sales of oil, gas and oil derivatives were up nearly 10 per cent in the period, to 3.26 million bpd.
Petrobras is set to release its third-quarter earnings on November 6.
(Reporting by Fabio Teixeira and Marta Nogueira in Rio de Janeiro; additional reporting by Andre Romani in Sao Paulo; Editing by Natalia Siniawski and Rosalba O'Brien)
