PetroChina 2012 profit drops 13.3 percent

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese oil and gas giant PetroChina says its 2012 profit plunged 13.3 percent due to price controls and higher costs for imported gas.

PetroChina Ltd. said Thursday it earned 115.3 billion yuan ($18.3 billion), or 0.63 yuan (10 U.S. cents) per share, compared with 132.9 billion yuan the previous year. Revenue rose 9.6 percent to 2.2 trillion yuan ($384 billion).

The Beijing-based company blamed slowing Chinese economic growth, bigger gas imports at higher prices and government controls that limit its ability to pass on costs to consumers.