(Sharecast News) - BP managed to turn in a profit of $0.1bn on a replacement cost basis, despite a "significantly" lower result in its oil trading arm, following the prior quarter's $6.7bn loss.
The oil major credited the absence of big write-offs together with a recovery in oil and gas prices, and demand, for the improvement in its bottom line, although it posted a significantly lower oil trading result
On a reported basis, the oil major posted -$0.5bn of red ink for the quarter, which nevertheless compared favourably with the $16.8bn in losses that it turned in during the preceding quarter.
Proceeds from asset sales rose to $0.6bn during the quarter with management adding that it had already completed or agreed disposals worth close to half its $25bn target for over 2025.
The company also made further progress on its goal of achieving $2.5bn in annual cash cost savings by end-2021 versus 2019 levels.
Net debt at quarter end stood at $40.4bn, which was down $0.5bn on the prior quarter and was expected to further reduce in the final three months of 2020 as the firm received the proceeds from its divestments.
A dividend of 5.25 cents was declared for the quarter just finished.
Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, hailed the company's ability to turn in a quarterly profit, but said that BP's ability to dodge the first back-to-back quarterly losses in over a decade "can't disguise the challenges facing the industry".
-- More to follow --
BP (BP.)25 May 2024 17:56
South Africa's Central Energy Fund acquires Durban refinery land, assets
CAPE TOWN, May 25 (Reuters) - South Africa's state-owned Central Energy Fund has acquired land and assets at the country's largest refinery which ha...