Brazil's Petrobras sees profits, stock drop

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — The leader of Brazil's state-run oil company says she's declaring a war on production delays as the company's stock fell due to a sharp drop in profits.

Oil company Petrobras saw its third-quarter net income fall 12 percent in the third quarter to $2.9 billion, compared to the same period last year. That's largely because of falling production. Its stock dropped 3.4 percent Monday.

In September, Petrobras produced 1.8 million barrels per day, its lowest since April 2008. Executives blamed that on scheduled maintenance on offshore rigs.

But CEO Maria Gracas Foster says Monday that no matter the reason, production has to get back on track, saying any project delays are a "catastrophe."

Petrobras is racing to tap into massive offshore oil finds that could more than 50 billion barrels.