Where Oil Flows, Profits Follow

The second quarter of 2026 produced a familiar result for oil companies, record-scale profits, but with an important geographic shift. As the Strait of Hormuz became difficult to use, companies outside the Gulf captured more of the available business.

The eight largest oil producers reported a combined $93 billion in net profit. Their market capitalization exceeded $3 trillion, making the quarter the third-highest on record, behind the first two quarters of 2022.

The price surge helped. The conflict launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on Feb. 28 briefly pushed Brent crude from $70 to more than $126 a barrel. But the gains did not come only from higher prices, unlike the record periods of 2008 and 2022.

Saudi Aramco reported the largest second-quarter profit, about $32 billion, yet recorded the weakest growth among the major producers. Shipping disruptions in the Strait and attacks on its facilities forced the company to cut production by a quarter from the previous quarter.

Companies farther from the conflict benefited in two ways. Asian and European buyers unable to obtain Middle Eastern oil sought alternative suppliers, allowing producers with uninterrupted output to sell at higher prices and in larger volumes. Chevron nearly quadrupled its profit, up 385% from a year earlier, while ExxonMobil doubled its profit to $14.5 billion. Italy’s Eni increased its profit nearly fivefold.

Gulf-based companies faced the opposite pressure. Periodic closures and higher security concerns reduced the volumes they could sell while increasing shipping and security costs. The result was a redistribution of oil profits away from the Strait and toward producers operating beyond it.