BP's profit lowers as oil prices rebound

Energy giant BP has reported lower-than-expected profits despite a fresh rise in global oil prices.

The company posted profits of $3.3 billion (£2.7 billion) between July and September 2023, lower than predictions of $4 billion, BBC reports.

Its earnings were down from $8.1 billion in the same period in 2022 when BP made huge profits following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which led to oil prices soaring.

Oil prices are currently lower than that period, but have risen recently.

BP said while oil production was strong, gas trading had been weak in recent months.

Its latest results are the first to be released after Bernard Looney resigned as the company's chief executive in September following a review of his personal relationships with colleagues.

Looney, who had led the company since 2020, stepped down with immediate effect.

While BP's profits for the three months to the end of September were lower than predicted by analysts, earnings were up from $2.6 billion in the previous quarter.

"I think the business is stable despite not having a chief executive at the moment full-time properly, but I think there's a touch of complacency," former BP executive Nick Butler told the BBC's Today programme.

But interim chief executive Murray Auchincloss said the quarter had been solid and the company expected to "grow earnings through this decade, and on track to deliver strong returns for our shareholders".

The company said the rise in profits from earlier this year was a result of higher oil refining margins and increased oil and gas production.