HOUSTON : The world‘s biggest oil companies, Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell, reported sharply higher third-quarter profits on Thursday, beating analysts‘ forecasts, as rising energy demand drove up oil and gas prices and fattened refinery margins.
Oil prices climbed by 12 per cent in the quarter from a year earlier on the back of the global economic recovery and strong demand from China, which became the world‘s largest energy user this year.
That helped boost Exxon‘s quarterly profit by 55 per cent and Shell‘s profits by 88 per cent after one-time items.
Reuters reported on Thursday that the companies were the world‘s two largest oil companies not owned by governments, and their profits both topped analysts‘ average forecasts, lifting their shares.
Shares in oil companies have performed strongly in the past several weeks after a dismal first half of the year. The Chicago Board of Options Exchange‘s oil company index had rallied nearly 17 per cent since mid-August, putting it nearly flat for the year.
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