Equinor Reports Surprise Profit
- Quarter was the ‘most dramatic’ in history of oil markets: CEO
- Maintains long-term price forecasts, avoiding big impairments
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Equinor ASA reported a surprise profit in the second quarter, helped by trading gains in chaotic markets and a tax change designed to help the Norwegian oil industry through the Covid-19 crisis.
The state-controlled producer, among the first oil majors to report results for the period, could prove to be an outlier in a quarter that’s set to be the most painful yet for the industry since the global pandemic destroyed demand earlier this year. Equinor also set itself apart from European competitors including BP Plc by not reducing its long-term crude price forecasts, thereby avoiding huge impairments.