Oil companies are expected to reap big profits because of US-Iran conflict

oil companies are expected to reap big profits because of Iran-conflict" class="entity-link entity-event" data-entity-id="136843" data-entity-type="event">US-Iran conflict 1 of 5 | A display shows $110.04 for gasoline on a fuel pump at a Mobil gas station on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File) 2 of 5 | FILE- A truck enters the Mobil" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7051" data-entity-type="organization">Exxon Mobil Baytown Olefins Plant, Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Baytown, Texas. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File) 3 of 5 | A customer pumps gas at a Chevron station Wednesday, May 27, 2026, in North Miami, Fla.(AP Photo/Marta Lavandier, File) 4 of 5 | A person secures the fuel nozzel while filling up their tank at a gas station on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File) 5 of 5 | The sun sets as a pump jack operates near Loving, N.M., on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan, File) 1 of 5 | A display shows $110.04 for gasoline on a fuel pump at a Mobil gas station on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File) 1 of 5 A display shows $110.04 for gasoline on a fuel pump at a Mobil gas station on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 2 of 5 | FILE- A truck enters the Mobil" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7051" data-entity-type="organization">Exxon Mobil Baytown Olefins Plant, Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Baytown, Texas. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File) 2 of 5 FILE- A truck enters the Mobil" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7051" data-entity-type="organization">Exxon Mobil Baytown Olefins Plant, Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Baytown, Texas. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 3 of 5 | A customer pumps gas at a Chevron station Wednesday, May 27, 2026, in North Miami, Fla.(AP Photo/Marta Lavandier, File) 3 of 5 A customer pumps gas at a Chevron station Wednesday, May 27, 2026, in North Miami, Fla.(AP Photo/Marta Lavandier, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 4 of 5 | A person secures the fuel nozzel while filling up their tank at a gas station on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File) 4 of 5 A person secures the fuel nozzel while filling up their tank at a gas station on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 5 of 5 | The sun sets as a pump jack operates near Loving, N.M., on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan, File) 5 of 5 The sun sets as a pump jack operates near Loving, N.M., on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] NEW YORK (AP) — Analysts are expecting major oil companies to report raking in large spring profits while fighting between Iran and the U.S. impeded petroleum shipments and consumers around the world paid more for fuel and confronted shortages.The conflict, now in its sixth month, halted most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that previously served as a delivery route for a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas. With global supplies constrained, prices for Brent crude, the international standard, soared from about $70 to above $100 a barrel for much of March, April and May, and at one point reached $126. That likely resulted in elevated profits for some of the biggest publicly traded oil companies as they sold their goods for higher prices. American oil and gas giants Mobil" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7051" data-entity-type="organization">Exxon Mobil and Chevron announce their second-quarter earnings on Friday. The money oil companies accrued between the beginning of April and the end of June could receive extra scrutiny this year. Gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices climbed during that period, increasing costs for drivers and airline passengers. Supplies ran low in some countries, leading to sporadic fuel rationing in Australia and government office closures in Nepal and Sri Lanka. Six of Europe’s largest oil companies posted first-quarter profits of $22 billion altogether, a total which was 43% higher than the same time last year, according to Global Witness, a nonprofit organization that investigates environmental problems.“There are constituencies around the world who are having a very good crisis, and the oil producers are one of them,” said Patrick Galey, fossil fuels lead at Global Witness. “When you compare that to the hundreds of millions of people who are struggling with rolling blackouts, with electricity curbs, rationing, waiting in line for food queues, or the disruption to fertilizers and the potential impact that that has on food prices, we don’t think that it’s a justifiable price for the rest of the world to be paying.”