Oil Companies Report Record Quarters

Four major petroleum companies announced stellar second quarter 2006 results this week, noting that the record profits are due to higher crude oil prices.

ExxonMobil reported $10.36 billion in net income for the second quarter (Q2), an increase of $2.72 billion from the same quarter in 2005. The company also reported a first half net income of $18.76 billion, a 21 percent increase over the first half of 2005.

Shell announced record Q2 results of $7.32 billion in profit, a 40 percent increase that the company attributes to higher crude oil prices, Bloomberg News reported. Shell's profit exceeded analysts' estimates of $6.2 billion; when adjusted for inventory changes and one time items, profit totaled $6.5 billion, the report stated.

BP recorded $7.27 billion in net income, up 30 percent from 2005 Q2 results. Company revenue rose 24 percent to $72.4 billion for the quarter, Bloomberg reported.

ConocoPhillips also attributed its $5.19 billion in net income to the high crude prices, as well as successful acquisitions, according to Bloomberg. The company's second quarter profit leapt 65 percent resulting in another record setting quarter.

All companies cited the inflated crude oil prices as a factor in their record earnings.

"Higher crude oil and natural gas realizations and improved refining margins were partly offset by lower marketing margins," said ExxonMobil chairman Rex W. Tillerson in a written statement.

"The high-priced environment has been very positive for them, and refining has been positive,'' said Ted Harper in a Bloomberg report. Harper manages 362,000 shares of ConocoPhillips at Frost National Bank in Houston, Texas.

Despite higher prices, "gasoline demand in the U.S. shows no signs of slowing," Gene Pisasale, spokesman at Mercantile Bankshares Corp. in Baltimore, told Bloomberg.
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