Exxon Roars To Record In Oil Slump
Annual Profit Soars Despite Slip in Quarter
While posting a $45.2 billion in annual profits, Exxon Mobil suffered a sharp drop in fourth-quarter profits from producing oil and gas.
While posting a $45.2 billion in annual profits, Exxon Mobil suffered a sharp drop in fourth-quarter profits from producing oil and gas. (By J. Scott Applewhite -- Associated Press)
By Steven Mufson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Exxon Mobil finished a roller-coaster year in the oil markets with an all-time record $45.2 billion in profits, despite fourth-quarter earnings that were a third lower than the same period a year before.
With oil prices slumping, Exxon Mobil suffered a sharp drop in profits from producing oil and gas but higher profit margins at refueling pumps and refineries overseas helped offset the impact of lower crude prices.
The world's most far-flung oil giant broke its own record for corporate profits in a year that saw oil prices climb to $147 a barrel in July then plunge to less than $40 a barrel. Despite falling prices, Exxon Mobil still beat analysts' expectations by registering $7.82 billion in profits, or $1.55 a share, for the final quarter of the year. Exxon Mobil and Chevron's revenue combined for 2008 exceeded the gross domestic product of all but 16 of the world's nations, according to Bloomberg.