Brazilian stocks closed lower ended weaker on Friday for the third straight session in light volume, with blue chips falling and many investors away for a long holiday weekend. The Bovespa index of the Sao Paulo Stock Exchange ended down 0.41 percent at 36,558.
On the Bovespa, heavyweight state-run oil and gas company Petrobras fell 2.74 percent to 41.20 reais after world oil prices continued their slide on stock builds and news that British Petroleum's problems with its pipeline in Alaska may not be as bad as previously thought. Steelmaker Companhia Siderurgica Nacional, or CSN, was among the biggest decliners, dropping 3.15 percent to 63.63 reais.
Other blue chips posting big declines were steelmaker Usiminas and mining giant Companhia Vale do Rio Doce, or CVRD. Usiminas shares were down 0.87 percent at 68.60 reais and CVRD was off 1.14 percent at 40.88 reais.