By Bosphorus News Economy Desk
Saudi Aramco and five Western oil majors reported more than $80 billion across their principal second-quarter profit measures after the war with Iran disrupted normal traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and drove crude and refined-product prices sharply higher.
Aramco led the group with adjusted net income of $33.4 billion, up 33 percent from a year earlier. ExxonMobil earned $14.5 billion and Chevron reported $12.1 billion, while Shell, BP and TotalEnergies recorded a combined $21.5 billion under their respective adjusted earnings measures.
The figures are not directly comparable under a single accounting definition, but the direction is clear: higher oil prices, product shortages and stronger refining margins delivered one of the industry's most profitable quarters in years. For Türkiye, which imports most of the oil and gas consumed by its economy, the same market shock is adding billions of dollars to the energy bill.
Aramco shifts crude toward the Red Sea
Aramco's adjusted net income rose to 125.1 billion Saudi riyals, equivalent to $33.4 billion, while reported net income reached about $32.7 billion. Higher realized oil prices outweighed lower sales volumes, rising operating costs and heavier tax charges.
The company entered the quarter with its 1,200-kilometer East-West Pipeline operating at its stated maximum capacity of 7 million barrels a day. The system carries crude from eastern Saudi Arabia to refineries and export terminals on the Red Sea coast, reducing reliance on the Strait of Hormuz and allowing Aramco to reroute part of its supply through Yanbu.
That capacity does not represent 7 million barrels a day of additional exports. It includes crude supplied to west-coast refineries, and Aramco has not disclosed the full volume diverted from Gulf terminals during the quarter.
The company declared a quarterly base dividend of $21.9 billion. Its results also showed that bypassing Hormuz does not remove maritime risk entirely, because westbound cargoes must still pass through the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb, where shipping has faced a separate security threat.
Exxon and Chevron benefit from production and refining
ExxonMobil reported earnings of $14.5 billion, more than double the corresponding figure a year earlier, with adjusted earnings reaching $14.7 billion. The company generated $23.6 billion in operating cash flow and distributed $9.4 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases.
Higher commodity prices were joined by record Permian Basin production and stronger refining results. Exxon's large upstream portfolio outside the Gulf and its refining capacity in the United States allowed it to benefit from the shortage in crude and transport fuels without carrying the same direct exposure as producers dependent on Hormuz.
Chevron reported $12.1 billion in earnings, compared with $2.5 billion a year earlier, while adjusted earnings reached $12 billion. The company also posted record US production and a 20 percent increase in worldwide output.
Shell recorded adjusted earnings of $9.8 billion, supported by higher realized prices and stronger trading and optimization results. BP reported underlying replacement-cost profit of $5.7 billion, $2.5 billion above the previous quarter, while TotalEnergies posted adjusted net income of $6.03 billion as higher oil prices, refining margins and petroleum trading lifted its results
Trump turns on Exxon and Chevron
US President Donald Trump accused ExxonMobil and Chevron of making "too much money" from the rise in fuel prices and said the companies should return some of the gain to consumers.
His intervention marked a break with an administration that has otherwise backed expanded US oil production and lower regulation. Trump is pressing for cheaper gasoline before the November midterm elections, while the continuing conflict with Iran and the disruption around Hormuz have helped sustain the prices supporting company earnings.
The American Petroleum Institute rejected the suggestion that companies were responsible for the increase, arguing that fuel prices reflected global supply risks and disruption across international energy markets.
Türkiye faces more than $14 billion in additional costs
Türkiye stands on the opposite side of the trade. Higher crude and natural gas prices increase the country's import bill, widen pressure on the current account and move through transport, industrial production and consumer prices.
Bosphorus News previously reported that the Hormuz crisis could add more than $14 billion to Türkiye's 2026 energy import bill, based on an Ember assessment of the country's exposure to higher fossil-fuel prices.
The estimate attributes around $8 billion of the additional cost to oil, with most of the remainder linked to natural gas. Türkiye imports approximately 83 percent of its crude oil and 95 percent of its gas, leaving the economy exposed even though its suppliers are not confined to countries whose exports pass through Hormuz. (Ember Energy)
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has put Türkiye's annual energy import bill at between $60 billion and $70 billion. Around two-thirds of the country's energy demand is met through imports.
Ember estimates that road transport accounts for about two-thirds of the additional oil cost. Fuel-price increases then spread into freight, food distribution and industrial expenses, meaning the full inflationary effect reaches households after the initial rise in wholesale energy prices.
The think tank also calculated that each additional one million electric vehicles on Turkish roads could cut annual fossil-fuel imports by about $900 million. That figure is a modeled long-term estimate rather than an immediate offset to the present price shock.
The earnings divide is stark. Aramco used pipeline capacity and Red Sea terminals to preserve exports, while ExxonMobil, Chevron and their European counterparts gained from higher prices, stronger refining margins and geographically diverse operations. Türkiye is absorbing the same disruption through a larger import bill and rising costs across transport and industry.
Sources: Saudi Aramco, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, TotalEnergies, Reuters, Ember, Türkiye's Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, Bosphorus News review and reporting.