Petróleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) is confident that its sales of crude oil to China will soon grow as the economy there recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic and factories reopen, Bloomberg reports, citing a written statement issued by the Brazilian state-owned company last week.

The news agency says China bought 54 percent of Brazilian exports of crude in the first quarter of this year.

The report says Petrobras reduced its output of crude in late March and early April but later increased it.

Petrobras is increasing its production of marine fuel to meet demand, so reducing its glut of crude, the report says.

Brazil has the capacity to store 159 million barrels of crude, over half of it at newer facilities for producing oil found offshore, Bloomberg quotes the Brazilian National Petroleum Agency as saying.