Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) reported earnings of $1.3 billion, or$0.68 per share, for the third quarter of 2016, compared with earnings of $2.0 billion, or $1.09 per share in the third quarter of last year.

Sales and other revenues of the San Ramon-based company were $29 billion in the latest quarter, compared to $33 billion in the year-ago period.

“Third quarter results, though down from a year ago, reflect an improvement from the first two quarters of this year,” said Chairman and CEO John Watson. “Our operational performance in the third quarter was strong.”

Watson said the company has “made progress toward our goals of lowering the cash breakeven in our upstream business and getting cash balanced,”

He noted that Chevron has reduced capital spending, and operating and administrative expenses have been reduced by over $10 billion from the first nine months of 2015.

The company increased its quarterly dividend by one cent to $1.08 per share.

Worldwide net oil-equivalent production was 2.51 million barrels per day in third quarter 2016, compared with 2.54 million barrels per day a year ago.

Upstream operations incurred a loss of $212 million in third quarter 2016 compared with a loss of $603 million a year ago. The improvement was due to lower operating and depreciation expenses, and lower taxes.

The company’s average sales price per barrel of crude oil and natural gas liquids was $37 in the latest quarter, down from $42 a year ago.

The average price of natural gas was $1.89 per thousand cubic feet in the third quarter of 2016, compared with $1.96 a year ago.

Net US oil-equivalent production of 698,000 barrels per day in third quarter 2016 was down 32,000 barrels per day from a year earlier.

The net liquids component of oil-equivalent production in third quarter 2016 increased 3% to 519,000 barrels per day, while net natural gas production decreased 20% to 1.08 billion cubic feet per day, primarily as a result of asset sales.

International upstream operations earned $666 million in the latest quarter, compared with earnings of $662 million a year ago.

The increase in earnings was primarily due to lower tax and operating expenses, and higher natural gas sales, partially offset by lower crude oil and natural gas realizations.

The international average sales price for crude oil and natural gas liquids in third quarter 2016 was $41 per barrel, down from $45 a year earlier.

The average price of natural gas was $4.18 per thousand cubic feet in the quarter, compared with $4.68 in last year’s third quarter.

Net international oil-equivalent production of 1.82 million barrels per day in third quarter 2016 was essentially unchanged from a year ago.

U.S. downstream operations earned $523 million in the third quarter of 2016, compared with earnings of $1.25 billion a year earlier. The decrease was primarily due to lower margins on refined product sales and lower earnings from the 50%-owned Chevron Phillips Chemical Company LLC.

Refinery crude oil input in third quarter 2016 increased 3 percent to 970,000 barrels per day from the year-ago period.

Refined product sales of 1.24 million barrels per day were essentially unchanged from 2015.

International downstream operations earned $542 million in the third quarter, compared with $962 million a year earlier.

Refinery crude oil input of 790,000 barrels per day in the third quarter increased by 2% from the year-ago period.

Total refined product sales of 1.47 million barrels per were down 2 percent from the year-ago period, due to lower fuel oil and jet fuel sales.