Iran rejects US claim to Hormuz as ship attacks mount 600 drones head for Moscow as Russia strikes Kyiv and Kryvyi Rih Death toll passes 50 after magnitude 7.7 quake off Flores Israeli strikes kill 11 in south Lebanon, deadliest since June truce Colombia asks Trump to suspend tariffs as quake toll climbs Rhine hits record low at Kaub as Hungary sinks barges to cool reactor US readies unprecedented economic measures against Iran US boat strikes pass 200 dead as Ecuadorean fishermen describe attacks Bond traders struggle to price $70bn of credit backstops behind AI buildout Alibaba says its open AI models passed three billion downloads Death toll rises to 68 after Lake Kariba ferry sinking Taliban mark five years in power as UN warns of rights crisis EU aircraft join fight against Belgium's record wildfire US presses Netanyahu over settlers as Qusra homes are occupied Mokha port halts operations as Houthi missiles hit Marib Seoul proposes talks to end the Korean war as North rejects drills China-led perovskite solar plant outperforms silicon in three-month field test OpenAI revenue run rate passes $40bn as revenue chief departs Hamas leader in Cairo as Kushner trip nears WHO says Congo's Ebola outbreak is outpacing the response Turkish parliament passes amnesty law for PKK members Morocco detains scores near Ceuta as feared mass crossing fails to materialise China publishes ecology reports to bolster South China Sea claims Myanmar says more than 300,000 Rohingya verified for repatriation Petrobras detects signs of oil off the mouth of the Amazon China condemns Japanese politicians' moves at Yasukuni Shrine US inflation cools as wages again lag behind prices Modi offers free exam coaching after youth protests in India Oil from grounded Russian tanker reaches Oman's coast Panama Canal cuts draught again as Mexico pitches rival corridor Ukraine's idle ports cost $1.75bn as farm exports fall Former Chinese premier Zhu Rongji dies At least 20 killed in communal clashes in central Nigeria Iran accuses Qatar of holding three of its pilots Xi calls for shift to prevention as floods batter China Venezuela frees 131 more political prisoners More Syrians in Germany lose refugee protection Audit finds gaps in Taiwan's counter-drone defences India drafts rules to open nuclear power to private firms Hichilema takes early lead as Zambian count resumes Paris prosecutors open investigation into tax portal hack Report details leverage behind Situational Awareness losses Argentina has lost 30,633 companies under Milei At least five dead in Indiana flooding Iran detains two French diplomats over alleged infiltration Canadian petition to expel US ambassador passes 170,000 signatures India raises $50bn from its diaspora and ends swap facility early Opaque start-ups build erotic AI industry from Cyprus and Malta Britain's biggest EV battery plant shelves expansion as Jaguar Land Rover talks stall Third drone debris find in a day on Turkish coasts Forecasters put 95 percent odds on a very strong El Niño Secondhand booksellers suspect AI firms behind bulk orders Etna alert lowered as Catania airport reopens Funeral held for Indigenous girl whose death sparked outback riots Iran rejects US claim to Hormuz as ship attacks mount 600 drones head for Moscow as Russia strikes Kyiv and Kryvyi Rih Death toll passes 50 after magnitude 7.7 quake off Flores Israeli strikes kill 11 in south Lebanon, deadliest since June truce Colombia asks Trump to suspend tariffs as quake toll climbs Rhine hits record low at Kaub as Hungary sinks barges to cool reactor US readies unprecedented economic measures against Iran US boat strikes pass 200 dead as Ecuadorean fishermen describe attacks Bond traders struggle to price $70bn of credit backstops behind AI buildout Alibaba says its open AI models passed three billion downloads Death toll rises to 68 after Lake Kariba ferry sinking Taliban mark five years in power as UN warns of rights crisis EU aircraft join fight against Belgium's record wildfire US presses Netanyahu over settlers as Qusra homes are occupied Mokha port halts operations as Houthi missiles hit Marib Seoul proposes talks to end the Korean war as North rejects drills China-led perovskite solar plant outperforms silicon in three-month field test OpenAI revenue run rate passes $40bn as revenue chief departs Hamas leader in Cairo as Kushner trip nears WHO says Congo's Ebola outbreak is outpacing the response Turkish parliament passes amnesty law for PKK members Morocco detains scores near Ceuta as feared mass crossing fails to materialise China publishes ecology reports to bolster South China Sea claims Myanmar says more than 300,000 Rohingya verified for repatriation Petrobras detects signs of oil off the mouth of the Amazon China condemns Japanese politicians' moves at Yasukuni Shrine US inflation cools as wages again lag behind prices Modi offers free exam coaching after youth protests in India Oil from grounded Russian tanker reaches Oman's coast Panama Canal cuts draught again as Mexico pitches rival corridor Ukraine's idle ports cost $1.75bn as farm exports fall Former Chinese premier Zhu Rongji dies At least 20 killed in communal clashes in central Nigeria Iran accuses Qatar of holding three of its pilots Xi calls for shift to prevention as floods batter China Venezuela frees 131 more political prisoners More Syrians in Germany lose refugee protection Audit finds gaps in Taiwan's counter-drone defences India drafts rules to open nuclear power to private firms Hichilema takes early lead as Zambian count resumes Paris prosecutors open investigation into tax portal hack Report details leverage behind Situational Awareness losses Argentina has lost 30,633 companies under Milei At least five dead in Indiana flooding Iran detains two French diplomats over alleged infiltration Canadian petition to expel US ambassador passes 170,000 signatures India raises $50bn from its diaspora and ends swap facility early Opaque start-ups build erotic AI industry from Cyprus and Malta Britain's biggest EV battery plant shelves expansion as Jaguar Land Rover talks stall Third drone debris find in a day on Turkish coasts Forecasters put 95 percent odds on a very strong El Niño Secondhand booksellers suspect AI firms behind bulk orders Etna alert lowered as Catania airport reopens Funeral held for Indigenous girl whose death sparked outback riots

Narrative thread · 1 event

Oil windfall profits

Where things stand

Second-quarter results this week showed the war between the US and Iran feeding oil earnings: Saudi Aramco's net profit rose 44% to about $33bn, BP's more than doubled past $5bn, reviving demands that the industry pay for environmental damage.

Oil and gas majors report quarterly earnings that track the crude price, which wars and supply shocks push higher. Campaigners argue such windfalls should fund repair of the environmental damage the industry causes, a claim the companies and their shareholders resist.

Timeline in detail

Wednesday, 5 August 2026Economy

Oil majors post windfall profits as Iran war lifts prices

Saudi Aramco said on Tuesday that second-quarter net profit rose 44% to about $33bn, helped by higher oil prices during the US-Iran war, while BP more than doubled its quarterly profit to more than $5bn. The Guardian reported that eight of the biggest oil companies made more than $90bn in three months, reviving demands that they pay for environmental damage.