Dubai- Massader News
Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest oil producer, said third-quarter profit dropped 45% from last year’s level, due largely to lower crude prices and smaller sales volumes, according to Bloomberg.
Aramco posted net income of 44.2 billion riyals ($11.8 billion), while sales fell 25% to 200 billion riyals, the company said Tuesday in a statement.
Income rose for the first time on a quarterly basis since June 2019, as Aramco benefited from a partial recovery in crude prices over the latest three-month period.
“We saw early signs of a recovery in the third quarter due to improved economic activity, despite the headwinds facing global energy markets,” Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser said. “We continue to adopt a disciplined and flexible approach to capital allocation in the face of market volatility.”
Although the results suggest that the worst of the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on energy demand may have passed, Aramco still faces a brittle market. Oil prices fell to a five-month low this week amid fresh travel restrictions in Europe aimed at stemming a surge in virus cases. OPEC and allied producers are weighing whether to take further action to curtail production or delay an easing of current curbs to buttress crude prices.