Aramco's wartime quarter was carried by refining, not crude

According to CNBC, adjusted net income of 31.2 billion dollars beat the analyst median of 30.66 billion dollars, against 28.6 billion dollars a year earlier. The National put reported net income at 36.25 billion dollars, up 34%, on revenue of 140.5 billion dollars. Free cash flow came to 28.2 billion dollars and the dividend to 21.9 billion dollars. Capital expenditure fell from 12.6 billion to 10.5 billion dollars.

The investor presentation cited by Investing.com shows the profit mix has flipped. Upstream adjusted operating income fell 9% to 46.8 billion dollars, while downstream rose 234% to a record 10.3 billion dollars. Between March and September refining margins averaged 21 dollars in Asia, 25 dollars in Europe and 27 dollars in the US, against 4, 2 and 4 dollars in January and February. Total hydrocarbon output rose 17% on the previous quarter to 11 million barrels of oil equivalent a day.

The company said the war has removed more than 3 billion barrels of supply from the market, leaving a net shortfall of roughly 2 billion barrels. A project to lift East–West pipeline capacity from 7 million to 10 million barrels a day is under engineering review. Chief executive Nasser said Aramco is looking for additional overseas storage and alternative export routes. MUFG noted that the Saudi PMI slipped from 55.3 to 54.0 in October, with firms reporting higher freight and insurance costs.