Oil majors reap $93 billion Q2 profits as Iran war drives energy windfall

Eight of the world’s largest oil producers posted a combined $93 billion in profits in the second quarter of 2026, nearly double their earnings in the same period last year, as the Iran war and disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz pushed oil prices higher.

The figures, reported by OilPrice.com, cover Saudi Aramco, BP, Shell, Equinor, TotalEnergies, Eni, Chevron and ExxonMobil.

Their combined profits rose from just under $50 billion in the second quarter of 2025.

The windfall came as the conflict that began in late February disrupted one of the world's most important energy corridors.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has described the resulting supply shock as the largest disruption in the history of the global oil market, with crude and oil-product flows through Hormuz falling from about 20 million barrels a day before the conflict to a near standstill.

Saudi Aramco recorded the largest gain among the companies highlighted in the report. Its second-quarter net income rose 34% to more than $33 billion, helped by higher oil prices and sales volumes.

BP also reported a sharp improvement, with second-quarter profit reaching $5.73 billion, nearly twice the level a year earlier and its highest quarterly net profit since the third quarter of 2022, according to the report.

Chevron posted $12 billion in adjusted earnings, including $8.2 billion from its upstream operations, with its quarterly profit reaching its highest level in at least six years.

The war sent crude prices sharply higher during the spring. Brent, the global benchmark, stood at about $68 a barrel at the end of February and approached $100 in May, according to OilPrice.com.

The market has since been highly volatile as hopes for a US-Iran settlement have alternated with renewed concerns over Hormuz.

On Aug. 17, Brent was trading around $89 a barrel, after gaining roughly 6% the previous week. West Texas Intermediate was near $83. Oil prices were being supported by stalled US-Iran talks and a sharp decline in tanker traffic through Hormuz.

Only five vessels crossed the strait on Saturday and none on Sunday, compared with 31 the previous weekend, Reuters reported.

The UAE has also accused Iran of attacking a third tanker operated by Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., adding to concerns about further supply disruption.

The earnings illustrate a sharp divide created by the energy crisis: oil producers are benefiting from higher prices at the same time consumers, airlines, manufacturers and transport companies face higher energy and shipping costs.

The IEA says roughly 20 million barrels a day of crude and oil products normally pass through Hormuz, equivalent to around one-fifth of global oil consumption.

The disruption has also affected diesel, jet fuel and LPG markets, raising costs well beyond the crude-oil market.

Although alternative export routes, strategic reserves and additional production have helped cushion the shock, the IEA says the near-closure of Hormuz remains the central risk to global energy security.

The extraordinary earnings have revived calls for governments to impose or increase windfall taxes on oil companies.

Critics argue that producers are benefiting from a geopolitical crisis that has pushed up energy costs for households and businesses.

The issue has also drawn criticism from US President Donald Trump, who said Aug. 3 that ExxonMobil and Chevron were making “too much money” from the shortage.

Oil companies, meanwhile, argue that their earnings reflect the need to provide energy during a period of extreme market disruption and that higher profits support investment, production and shareholder returns.

The windfall also underscores the vulnerability created by continued dependence on oil and gas.

The IEA estimates that cumulative oil-supply losses from Middle Eastern producers have exceeded 1.3 billion barrels since the start of the war. It said flows through Hormuz averaged only about 2.7 million barrels a day during March through May, compared with roughly 20 million barrels a day before the conflict.

For governments, the crisis has therefore become more than a question of fuel prices.

It has accelerated discussions over strategic reserves, alternative shipping routes, domestic production, renewable energy, electrification and diversification of energy supplies.

For the oil majors, however, the immediate picture is starkly different: one of the world's worst energy disruptions has produced one of the industry's biggest profit bump in years.