Third-quarter 2009 earnings fall sharply from 2008 peaks

摘要

Lower oil and natural gas prices and depressed refining margins resulted in a sharp reduction in the third-quarter 2009 earnings of oil and gas producers and refiners. The combined earnings of three samples of companies were down across the board for the third quarter and first 9 months of 2009. The publication looked at groups of US-based oil and gas producers, Canadian producers and pipeline operators, and service and supply firms, each of which posted declines as compared to the year-earlier periods. The sample of oil and gas producers based in the US posted a combined 74% decline in earnings in the third quarter of 2009 compared with a year earlier. Weak product demand and relatively strong crude prices hurt the third-quarter results of US refiners via meager refining margins. A sample of 11 companies with headquarters in Canada combined for a 75% decrease in net income from the 2008 third quarter.