PetroChina earnings rise 30%

PetroChina Co, the country's biggest oil and gas producer, posted a 30 percent increase in third-quarter earnings thanks to higher crude oil prices and increased output.

The company reported a net profit of 39.89 billion yuan from July to September. Earnings per share were 0.22 yuan, an increase of 0.05 yuan from the same period of last year, PetroChina said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange yesterday.

From January to September, PetroChina's total oil and gas output reached 880.7 million barrels equivalent, an increase of 6 percent year-on-year, said the statement.