Brazilian state-controlled oil company Petróleo Brasileiro SA posted an unexpected third-quarter loss on Thursday after drastically reducing the value of oil fields and other assets amid a severe downsizing and weak oil prices. Petrobras lost a net 16.458 billion reais ($4.9 billion) last quarter, five times more than a year earlier. Despite that, operational and cash flow trends improved and, without an impairment, profit could have totaled 600 million reais, Chief Financial Officer Ivan Monteiro told reporters. The numbers came as Chief Executive Officer Pedro Parente cleaned up a balance sheet with unrealistically priced investments, whose losses were magnified by a stronger currency and a rising cost of capital. The company shaved the value of assets by 15.292 billion reais and of investments by 417 million reais […]