- The surge in US oil production helped big US oil companies post their second-highest annual profits in a decade, the FT reports.
- ExxonMobil and Chevron made profits of $36 billion and $21.4 billion, respectively, in the fourth quarter.
- Still, these numbers are down from 2022 when the Ukraine crisis gave energy companies a boost.
US oil giants are benefiting big from the boom in production that flooded the market with crude last year.
ExxonMobil and Chevron both posted their second-highest annual profits in a decade, the Financial Times reported Friday.
Exxon reported fourth-quarter profit of $36 billion, down from $55.7 billion the previous year, but otherwise its highest since 2012. Chevron reported a profit of $21.4 billion, down from $35.5 billion the previous year, but still its strongest since 2013.
Both companies missed the mark on their revenues, with Exxon recording $84.3 billion versus an expected $85.2 billion, and Chevron recording $47.18 billion versus an expected $51.62 billion.
“If you take the market out of it, you take out the prices and margins and look at it on an apples-to-apples basis, we’ve seen our earnings power double from 2019 to 2023,” Exxon CEO Darren Woods told CNBC. Have done more than.” Friday.
The fact that profit numbers are lower than in 2022 – when turmoil in Ukraine gave oil companies a huge boost – is a byproduct of record US oil supplies. The US pumped more oil than ever in 2023, reaching a record 13.3 million barrels per day, sending prices down 11% for the year. But increased production helped keep profits near decade highs.
Companies like Exxon and Chevron found themselves at the center of this blockbuster year. As a result, companies have increased their capital expenditure budgets for 2024, and poured more money into the Permian Basin – the epicenter of the shale boom.
According to the Financial Times, Chevron’s chief financial officer said their strong quarter was led by record production in the Permian Basin. And Exxon’s production in the Permian and Guyana was up 18% in 2023.
Source: markets.businessinsider.com
