Exxon Mobil Earnings Rise 10 Percent (for the 1st quarter of 2007)

[UpInArms]

Source: New York Times

HOUSTON, April 26 — Despite a winter of relatively soft oil and natural gas prices, Exxon Mobil on Thursday reported another surge in profit for the first quarter of the year because of stronger earnings from its refining, marketing and chemicals businesses.

Exxon’s continuing good fortunes — it said the results were its best ever for any first quarter — were particularly noteworthy given the mixed earnings picture reported in recent days by other large oil companies. Most of them cannot match the cost management and range of investments held by the world’s largest publicly traded oil company.

Exxon, BP, ConocoPhillips, Occidental, Hess and other companies that reported this week generally acknowledged that profits from oil sales, though still hefty, had slowed in recent months.

While oil prices had climbed from an average of $20 a barrel through much of the 1990s to a record of more than $78 a barrel last July, oil prices settled to prices of $55 to $65 during the early months of the year. That was about $5 lower than last year.

Oil prices have crept up in recent weeks and gasoline stockpiles are dropping as the summer driving season approaches. But most experts say they expect OPEC to continue producing at levels that would keep prices at the pump for regular gas in most states at less than $3 a gallon. That will assure strong profits for oil companies, though probably not at record levels.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/27/business/27exxon.html?_r=1&ref=business&oref=slogin

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[w4rma]

1. Sick. Their profits were already obscene. (nt)

[whistle]

2. They will be up 40% in the 2nd quarter gas is now $2.99 for reg

[INdemo]

3. I heard this today and one of the reasons for higher profits

was increased refining......Whoops..I thought the latest increase in gas prices was because of limited refining. Someone slipped..Congress needs to take action now and pass legislation for windfall profit taxes..Billions of dollars in profits for one quarter is certainly a sign that we are getting ripped off.

[INdemo]

4. After I filled up the other day I noticed that 15 minutes later the price wnet up 20

cents...The corporate oil control started about 20 years ago when the EPA was forcing independents to upgrade their storage tanks.. Because of the astronomical costs many independents sold out to major oil companies. After the major oil companies took over most of the service stations the EPA relaxed their storage requirements..so tell me all this wasn't planned.. We were being scammed way back then..

[sillyphoenix]

5. Absolutely sickening.

Exxon Mobil set a record for most profit by any company, ever last year. PROFIT, not income. How can they possibly continue to get away with that kind of thing? Are people really that stupid?

I'm drunk and the Yankees are losing again, so I'm probalby not making that much sense.

[Duer 157099]

6. Time to rename them Enron-Mobil

to reflect more of their true nature

[mtnester]

7. With that, in central Ohio, gasoline shot up more than 30 cents a gallon

to $3.00.

I have no words to describe my silent rage.