Petrol prices strain US households as oil giants Chevron, Exxon profits soar
Low-income US households are hit hardest, spending more than 10 percent of monthly income on petrol as prices rise. United States President Donald Trump has
Low-income US households are hit hardest, spending more than 10 percent of monthly income on petrol as prices rise. United States President Donald Trump has lambasted the nation’s biggest oil and gas giants as Houston, Texas-based Chevron reported record earnings while consumers struggle with soaring petrol prices. “I don’t like it,” Trump told reporters on Monday in reference to the blockbuster second-quarter earnings, as his war on Iran has kept oil prices high for months. “Chevron, too much money. ExxonMobil, too much. Too much money.” Trump’s comments came on the heels of an interview Chevron CEO Mike Wirth gave on the Fox News programme Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo. Writing on his Truth Social platform, the US president berated Wirth for not crediting his administration’s efforts to help the oil industry. “The only thing he [Wirth] conveniently forgot to mention is that, without the genius, foresight, strength, and stability of the TRUMP Administration, the Oil Industry, and our Country itself, would be DEAD!” Chevron reported its highest quarterly profits in six years on Friday. Adjusted earnings per share came to $6.06, or $12bn, as tensions between the US and Iran strained global oil supply chains in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, where roughly one-fifth of the world’s energy supply travelled through before the war, sending prices soaring. Chevron rewarded its employees. Wirth praised them for their work and said in an email that most workers would receive a bonus equivalent to half their monthly base pay, the Reuters news agency reported, citing an internal email. Al Jazeera has not been able to independently confirm Reuters’ reporting. Chevron’s strong earnings come as the company is less reliant on Middle Eastern production operations than its competitors, allowing it to reap the benefits of higher global oil prices during the quarter.
Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil prices, was 23 percent higher than in the first three months of the year. “Being less dependent on the Strait of Hormuz is definitely helping them. It’s also the refining they’re able to do here. The fact that Chevron has less than 5 percent exposure there gives it some protection,” Bill Drolet, executive director, mergers & acquisitions at The Post Oak Group investment bank, told Al Jazeera. “More than 70 percent of Chevron’s production is concentrated in America, and that’s where it’s making its biggest margins right now.” Chevron also benefitted from the president’s move to open up oil production in Venezuela after US special forces abducted the country’s president, Nicolas Maduro, in January. Chevron had stayed on in the South American nation even after former President Hugo Chavez nationalised oil production. Chevron did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment. Competitors also performed well. ExxonMobil on Friday posted its best quarterly profits in four years, but they fell short of analysts’ expectations. Earnings raked in $9.2bn. Exxon did not respond to a request for comment. On Thursday, Valero Energy reported its highest ever second-quarter profit, with net income coming in at $3.7bn as US refiners reap the benefits of tensions choking oil production across the Middle East. But those benefits have not reached consumers, who are feeling the strain at the petrol pump. Petrol prices are above $4 a gallon (3.78 litres) across the US. The average price for a gallon of petrol is $4.09, down from $4.11 this time last week, but up from $3.82 a month ago, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA), which tracks daily petrol prices.
The BriefWire