By Chelsey Dulaney
Exxon Mobil Corp., the biggest and richest U.S. oil company,
reported a 52% drop in profit for its second quarter, as higher
profit from its refining and chemical operations couldn't offset
plunging earnings in its exploration and production business amid
lower crude prices.
Shares of Exxon Mobil, down 16% over the past year, fell 1.8% to
$81.51 in premarket trading.
Exxon's profit has been helped by its downstream and chemicals
divisions, which are being boosted by low prices for oil and gas.
In the first quarter, the segments reaped nearly as much profit as
it made from pumping oil and gas--which traditionally generates the
most profit.
In the latest quarter, refining and marketing earnings, or
downstream, more than doubled to $1.51 billion from $711 million a
year earlier.
Profit in the exploration and production business, or upstream,
plunged 74% to $2.03 billion, as its U.S. upstream segment swung to
a loss.
The chemical segment earnings improved 48% to $1.25 billion.
In all, Exxon reported a profit of $4.19 billion, or $1 a share,
down from $8.78 billion, or $2.05 a share, a year earlier. Revenue
fell 33% to $74.11 billion.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a per-share profit
of $1.11 and revenue of $72.48 billion.
Capital spending fell to $8.26 billion from $9.8 billion a year
earlier.
Exxon has moved to conserve cash in a sign that it doesn't
expect a quick rebound in crude prices. The company has announced
it would slash its capital spending by this year and reduce its
stock buybacks in the near term.
Write to Chelsey Dulaney at Chelsey.Dulaney@wsj.com
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