BP PLC beat third-quarter earnings forecasts by a big margin as its cost-cutting program proved more successful than expected, prompting the UK oil major to increase its target for savings for the year.
Dealers said they expected the London-based company’s shares to open 3 percent higher on the earnings.
BP said third-quarter replacement cost net profit, which strips out unrealized gains or losses related to changes in the value of fuel inventories, fell 50 percent to US$4.98 billion, because of lower oil and gas prices.
Excluding one-offs, the result was US$4.67 billion, compared with an average forecast of US$3.16 billion from a poll of 11 analysts.
A lower-than-expected tax rate flattered the result, but reductions of more than 15 percent in costs in the oil and gas production and refining units were the key driver of the better-than-expected earnings, a spokesman said.
“These results demonstrate real operational momentum across the company. We continue to transform our cost base,” chief executive Tony Hayward said in a statement.
The strong progress on squeezing out costs could boost investor optimism about cost-cutting programs at rivals such as Royal Dutch Shell, which reports on Thursday.
The company said oil and gas production averaged 3.917 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, up 7 percent compared with the same period last year.
BP said its debt-to-equity or gearing ratio fell in the quarter, against expectations that it would rise.
BP and its rivals had been borrowing this year to meet high dividend payments, or in some cases, cutting their dividends.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source