Saudi Aramco Q1 profits jump 30% on oil market recovery

Energy giant Saudi Aramco on Tuesday posted a 30 per cent jump in first quarter profits, in a sign of recovery from last year’s oil market crash fuelled by the coronavirus pandemic.

Aramco said its net profit rose to $21.7 billion in the first three months of the year, compared to $16.7 billion in the same quarter of 2020, owing to a stronger oil market and higher refining and chemicals margins.

The bumper results follow strong profits posted last month by major oil firms — including France’s Total, Britain’s BP and Anglo-Dutch group Shell — as a recovery in crude prices fuelled their rebound from the pandemic.

“The momentum provided by the global economic recovery has strengthened energy markets,” Aramco chief executive Amin Nasser said in a statement.