ExxonMobil and Chevron posted a combined $26.5 billion in second-quarter profit as Middle East supply disruptions, constrained refining capacity and elevated fuel prices reshaped global energy markets.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
America’s two largest oil companies reported record or near-record quarterly earnings Friday as the war with Iran disrupted energy supplies across the Middle East and shrinking global refining capacity pushed margins sharply higher.
ExxonMobil and Chevron generated a combined $26.5 billion in second-quarter profit, according to a Financial Times report, benefiting from increased oil production, stronger refining margins and elevated gasoline and diesel prices.
Chevron recorded $12.2 billion in quarterly profit, the highest in company history and nearly five times its earnings from the same period a year earlier.
ExxonMobil reported net income of $14.5 billion, twice its year-ago result and its strongest quarterly performance since the energy price surge that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Both companies have pushed production toward record levels while running refineries near maximum capacity as they seek to meet demand during a period of substantial disruption in global energy markets. The Middle East conflict has reduced oil production throughout parts of the Gulf region and interfered with refinery operations, placing additional pressure on an already tight fuel market.
ExxonMobil Chief Financial Officer Neil Hansen said further price increases remain possible if those disruptions persist.
“As long as these disruptions continue, it is going to continue to impact the global energy system,” Hansen told the Financial Times.
Hansen said the strain extends beyond the Middle East. Ukrainian attacks against Russian refineries and China’s reduction in petroleum product exports have also tightened worldwide supplies.
The greater constraint, he said, is increasingly found in refined fuels rather than crude oil itself. Global capacity to convert crude into products such as gasoline and diesel has declined, leaving the market more vulnerable when operating refineries are disrupted or demand increases.
That imbalance has produced particularly strong earnings for refining companies.
Valero Energy reported second-quarter net income of $3.7 billion, more than five times what it earned a year earlier. HF Sinclair’s earnings nearly quadrupled to $892 million, while PBF Energy moved from a year-earlier loss to more than $1 billion in quarterly profit.
The results reflect an increasingly constrained global refining system in which companies with available operating capacity can capture significantly larger margins.
The sharp increase in fuel-sector profits is occurring as President Donald Trump continues to pressure gasoline retailers and energy companies to lower prices for consumers.
Trump directed the Department of Justice last month to investigate whether oil companies and gasoline retailers were engaging in price gouging as fuel costs climbed. The move echoed an approach used by the Biden administration when gasoline prices surged following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Trump also issued a warning to fuel retailers in a late-June Truth Social post.
“Gasoline Retailers must get their Prices down, IMMEDIATELY. If Retailers don’t do this, big problems lie ahead!” Trump wrote.
The president has repeatedly said he wants the national gasoline price to fall to approximately $2.25 per gallon, arguing that greater U.S. energy production and lower crude prices should ultimately produce substantial savings at the pump.
“We’re going to get those prices way down,” Trump has said.
Gasoline prices remain considerably above that goal. AAA currently puts the national average for regular gasoline at approximately $4.11 per gallon, more than $1.80 above Trump’s stated target.
Rather than responding to higher fuel prices by restricting domestic oil production, the Trump administration has pursued additional U.S. refining capacity.
White House officials have confirmed efforts aimed at reopening idled refining facilities, including the St. Croix refinery in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The strategically located facility was originally designed to process heavy Venezuelan crude.
The administration has also backed the development of additional refining capacity as part of a broader effort to increase U.S. energy security and reduce gasoline costs.
Venezuelan crude has meanwhile taken on a larger role in supplying American refiners.
Federal data show U.S. imports of Venezuelan oil increased from approximately 110,000 barrels per day in January to roughly 575,000 barrels per day in June, the highest level recorded since 2018.
Most of that crude has moved to refineries in Texas and Louisiana that are specifically designed to process Venezuela’s heavier grades of oil.
Analysts say the additional Venezuelan shipments have helped compensate for reduced Middle Eastern supplies as disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz have limited traditional Gulf exports.
Oil producers and refiners are likely to remain under political pressure as consumers face higher fuel costs, but industry analysts have attributed current market conditions primarily to global supply disruptions and constraints in available refining capacity rather than excessive corporate pricing.
Companies that can maintain high production and keep refineries operating near full capacity are consequently generating unusually strong earnings while serving a global market facing one of its most significant recent disruptions in both crude supply and refined fuel availability.
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