Move to replace Petrobras boss spooks investors wary of political interference

摘要

AN unexpected shift in command at Brazil's Petrobras rocked the financial markets this week, with investors digesting the surprising news and fearing that the days of political interference at the state-controlled oil giant are back.Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro announced he was replacing Petrobras chief executive Roberto Castello Branco, a liberal economist with close ties to Finance Minister Paulo Guedes, with Joaquim Silva e Luna, a retired Army general.The change was poorly received by most analysts and credit raters overwhelmingly downgraded Petrobras' stock on fears Bolsonaro could resort to populist tactics to try to influence the company's fuel-pricing policy and undermine recent policies of prudent debt deleveraging.