ExxonMobil reports that Q1 profits double to $11.4 bn

ExxonMobil reported Friday that first-quarter profits more than doubled to $11.4 billion, as the US oil giant returned over $8 billion to shareholders during the period.

Oil prices were lower in the 2023 period, but earnings were boosted by a better performance in the refining business, as well as higher oil and natural gas production.

Results in the 2022 quarter were also dented by one-time costs associated with ExxonMobil’s withdrawal from a Russia project after the invasion of Ukraine.

The profits, a record for the company’s first quarter, compared to $5.5 billion in the year-ago period. Revenues declined 4.3 per cent to $86.6 billion.