Oil majors seen having "ugly" second quarter

LONDON (Reuters) – The world’s largest oil companies likely had an “ugly” second quarter, with earnings hit by a halving of oil and gas prices, sharply lower refining margins and, worst of all for many, stubbornly high costs.

The oil and gas sector will likely report a 62 percent drop in second-quarter earnings compared to 2008, and a 27 percent decline compared to the first quarter of 2009, analysts at Citigroup predicted.

The quarter-on-quarter decline comes despite a recovery in crude prices to almost $60 per barrel from around $44 in the first quarter, and reflects continued weakness in gas prices and crude processing margins and, for many, lower production.

Reuters