
Brazil’s government managed oil and gas corporation Petrobras posted a net benefit of 21.182 billion Reais (approx 10.6bn dollars) in 2012, which is 36% below 2011, reported the company in a filing, but in the fourth quarter profits totalled 7.747bn Reais (approx 3.9bn dollars) 53% higher than in the same period in 2011.

After months of delays, the P-63 floating production storage and offloading unit (FPSO) has made its temporary home in Brazil's Port of Rio Grande, Petrobras and the Quip consortium said on Thursday.

An Argentine appeals court has upheld an embargo on the assets of Chevron Corp.'s local subsidiary, a legal setback for the company, which had said the embargo compromised its operations in the country. A lower court judge issued the embargo last year as part of a decades-old legal dispute involving claims that Chevron is responsible for environmental contamination in Ecuador.

Brazil's state-run oil company Petrobras said in a market filing that it would increase refinery prices for gasoline and diesel by 6.6% and 5.4%, respectively, starting on January 31. However the market’s reaction was negative with the Bovespa stock exchange falling to a seven-week low.

Royal Dutch Shell, Europe’s biggest oil company, isn’t liable in four out of five claims bought by Nigerian farmers for pollution, a Dutch court ruled. However the company’s local venture must pay compensation in one case.

The US economy unexpectedly shrank at an annualised rate of 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2012, initial official estimates indicate. If confirmed, it would be the first contraction logged by the US economy since the 2009 global recession. The world's largest economy grew 3.1% in July to September.

Hydrocarbons exploration company Borders and Southern Petroleum announced on Monday that the development of its gas condensate discovery in the Falkland Islands is commercially viable. B&S made its Darwin (East-West) discovery in April and has been carrying out tests to determine the nature of its find.

By James Stafford - The Mediterranean has joined the shale game, but as most of Europe's Mediterranean countries drag their feet, all eyes are on Israel, Turkey, and Algeria. For Israel, it will be a slow road without the majors.

The European Union27 international trade in goods with the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, (CELAC), has been characterised in recent years by steady growth between 2003 and 2008, a sharp decline in 2009 and a strong recovery since then.

The government of the Falkland Islands has made a transfer of over 8 million pounds (£ 8.274 million) to the new Oil Development Reserve, a first step towards a ‘Sovereign Wealth Fund’ based on the Norwegian model it was explained at this week’s meeting of the Standing Finance Committee.