Oil Giants Post Billions in Third-Quarter Profits as Gas Averages $4.20, Up From $3.03 a Year Ago
Fox Business says Exxon earned more from refining than from drilling for the first time in at least six years. Gas prices rose 34.2% over the past year in the September price index.
Big oil is making money while drivers pay more, Fox Business reports.
The profits. U.S. oil giants earned billions of dollars in the third quarter as oil prices rose on supply problems caused by conflicts around the world. Fox says ExxonMobil, the largest U.S. oil producer by market value, had more revenue from refining than from exploration and drilling for the first time in at least six years. Chevron's downstream earnings hit their highest point over the same period.
The pump. AAA says the national average for a gallon of regular was $4.20 on Friday. That is down from $4.43 a month ago and well above $3.03 a year ago. Diesel reached a record average of $6.52 a gallon on Sept. 22, which Fox says matters for trucking and for what groceries cost.
The index. The Labor Department's September consumer price index showed gas prices up 9.1% on the month and up 34.2% from a year earlier. Fox says prices have swung since the war in Iran began in late February: up 21.2% in March, 5.4% in April and 7% in May, then down 9.7% in June and 2.9% in July, before rising again by 3.9% in August and 9.1% in September on fears of renewed fighting. Fox also points to the Russia-Ukraine war and attacks on energy infrastructure as pressures on supply.
Note for readers: Fox Business does not give the companies' profit figures in the part we read, and it does not say how much of the rise in gas prices the companies caused. Our earlier stories on gas prices and diesel costs are on the site. Reuters contributed to the original report.