A turnaround in US oil services firm Halliburton's Latin American operations is dependent on events in Brazil and Mexico, the firm's CEO David Lesar said during a 2Q14 conference call.

Halliburton's total Latin America revenue fell to US$897mn in the second quarter from US$994mn in 2Q13. In the same period, total Latin America operating income dropped to US$61mn from US$101mn, according to Halliburton's unaudited 2Q14 financial report.

"I am certainly not thrilled with how some of the things played out this quarter," Lesar said. Nonetheless, the CEO sees a path to profitability in Latin America that depends heavily on Brazil and Mexico.

In Mexico, state oil firm Pemex delayed a software consulting blanket order which affected 2Q14 revenues. Halliburton's Mexico activities also experienced disruption due to social opposition.

Meanwhile, Brazilian state oil firm Petrobras is retendering a deepwater drilling contract. Assuming the Pemex blanket order and the Petrobras drilling contract come through in the second half, the firm will "continue to target 2014 Latin America margins to be in line with the prior year," the CEO said.

Lesar said he is confident that Pemex management will approve the billing currently being submitted by Halliburton and that he expects the Petrobras retender to conclude by early Q4. "I expect a healthy reset as we look ahead to 2015 and beyond."

The CEO was positive about Mexico's long-term prospects. "We remain encouraged by the prospect of energy reform in Mexico and believe that as the market gains more certainty around the direction of reform, future service activity will increase," Lesar said.

Companywide, Halliburton saw second quarter revenue rise to US$8.051bn from US$7.317bn in the second quarter of 2013. Net income jumped to US$775mn from US$648mn. The results were mainly due to significant activity improvements in North America and the eastern hemisphere, according to Halliburton's 2Q14 financial report.