BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 6. ExxonMobil's earnings from energy products in 4Q2023 totaled $3.2 billion, Trend reports.
According to the company's latest financial report, this marked a significant rise from $2.4 billion in the preceding third quarter, reflecting an increase of $765 million.
ExxonMobil explains that this growth was driven by a favorable $1.2 billion impact from derivatives mark-to-market adjustments and the resolution of previously unfavorable timing effects, which more than compensated for the diminished refining margins in the seasonally challenging industry. Additionally, positive contributions came from favorable tax implications, year-end inventory adjustments, and foreign exchange effects.
Despite these gains, there were mitigating factors, including elevated seasonal expenses and reduced volumes due to increased scheduled maintenance and divestments, the energy giant noted. Identified items contributed to an earnings boost of $222 million compared to the third quarter. Excluding these specific items, earnings for the quarter reached $3 billion, marking a notable increase of $543 million compared to 3Q2023.
At the same time, compared to the same quarter of 2022, earnings dropped by $863 million. This was due to weaker industry refining margins and increased project-related expenses, although there was some offset from the positive effects of derivatives mark-to-market.
Identified items played a role in boosting earnings by $873 million, primarily because of reduced European taxes on the energy sector and no asset impairments this time. Excluding these identified items, earnings were $3 billion, showing a decrease of $1.7 billion from the same quarter of 2022.