Recent Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) 8-K filings by supermajor ExxonMobil shows a dip in its first quarter profits, which the company said it attributed to drop in oil and gas prices.
Operating results could drop to around US$9.6 billion, Exxon’s snapshot of factors affecting first quarter earnings outlined. This is compared to US$12.8 billion net profit from the fourth quarter in 2022.
Exxon said the drop was driven by its exploration business. Operating results from pumping oil and gas could fall around US$5.2 billion, a drop from US$8.2 billion in the last quarter.
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Global oil prices fell about 7% to an average of US$82 per barrel while U.S. gas prices fell by more than half in the most recent period, both compared to the final quarter of 2022. Global oil settled on April 4 near US$85 a barrel, according to a Reuters report.
Exxon’s profits from refining oil into gasoline, diesel and other fuel products dropped to around US$3.6 billion, owing to higher maintenance costs and reduced margins.
The supermajor’s chemicals business had the heaviest dip with US$300 million compared with the fourth quarter results.
Full results are expected to be released on April 28.
But the dip could be temporary as the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced a 1.16 million barrel per day cut – a move Wall Street says could put oil over US$100 a barrel this summer.
