Shell shares rise after buyback statement but earnings down

SHELL reported a significant drop in profits for the first quarter yesterday, as crude oil prices weakened due to geopolitical uncertainty.

- SAMUEL NORMAN

The FTSE 100 oil behemoth posted adjusted earnings of $5.58 billion (£4.2bn) for the first three months of the year.

Although this exceeded analyst predictions of $4.96, it represented a considerable decline from the $7.73bn reported for the same period last year.

Shares in the energy company increased by over 2% during early trading yesterday.

Crude oil hit a quarterly high on January 15, prior to President Donald Trump's inauguration, at $82 per barrel.

However, it fell in the subsequent months and settled around $75 on March 31.

The reporting period narrowly missed Trump's sweeping 'Liberation Day' tariffs on trading partners, which caused oil prices to plummet.