Petrobras' incomplete recovery

Brazil's state oil company has taken major strides forward, but further progress and support from the next government are needed

A company's share price doesn't tell its whole story, but it's one way to track a firm's fortunes. Petrobras has endured a rollercoaster ride through the market—during a tumultuous decade that saw it fly high as an investor darling, collapse and more recently mount something of a comeback. At its peak in 2010, following the discovery of the massive pre-salt oilfields, Brazil's national oil company set a record with a $70bn share sale and, shortly after that, saw its market value peak at $229bn, surpassing supermajors Shell and Chevron. But Petrobras never lived up to that hype, and things got particularly ugly in early 2016 when it was hit by a perfect storm of scandal, debt and an oil-price