Chevron and ExxonMobil reported sharply higher third-quarter profits on Friday, October 30, with both companies exceeding Wall Street forecasts as elevated diesel prices boosted their refining businesses. Their U.S. refineries operated at or near full capacity, helping supply fuel as disruptions affected production in Russia and the Middle East.
Diesel prices have climbed worldwide as Ukraine and Iran have bombed refineries in Russia and the Middle East. U.S. refiners have responded by increasing production to help cover the resulting supply gap. The stronger refining results accompanied gains in both companies' shares before the market opened, with Chevron rising about 2% and Exxon trading roughly 1.5% higher.
Chevron posted net income of $9.9 billion, or $5.06 per share, an increase of nearly 200% from $3.5 billion, or $1.82 per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, earnings reached $5.28 per share, above the $4.89 forecast by analysts surveyed by LSEG. Revenue also surpassed expectations, totaling $67.8 billion against an estimate of $61.6 billion.
Exxon's quarterly profit doubled to $15.4 billion, or $3.72 per share, compared with $7.5 billion, or $1.76 per share, in the third quarter of 2025. Adjusted earnings were $4.23 per share, exceeding the $4.08 analysts had anticipated. The company reported revenue of $113.2 billion, ahead of the $103.1 billion consensus forecast.
Chevron said its U.S. refineries processed a record volume of crude, slightly more than 1 million barrels a day, while operating at 98% capacity. Diesel and jet fuel yields increased more than 10%. Exxon's Gulf Coast refineries ran at 100% utilization and recorded their second-highest diesel production, according to the company.
Chevron's refining profit rose more than 300% to $4.9 billion from $1.1 billion in the same quarter of 2025. Its oil and gas production business earned $5.7 billion, a 70% increase from $3.3 billion a year earlier. At Exxon, quarterly refining earnings of about $7.2 billion exceeded the roughly $7.1 billion earned by its production business.
Across the first nine months of the year, Exxon's refining profits reached $11.4 billion, up nearly 200% from $4 billion in the corresponding period of 2025. Its production averaged about 4.5 million barrels a day this year, down more than 2% from nearly 4.7 million during the first nine months of 2025.
Chevron's production also declined, slipping to 3.9 million barrels a day from about 4 million a year earlier. The decrease came from its international operations, partly because of the Middle East conflict. U.S. output was largely unchanged from the same period last year.
