BP, Exxon and Chevron report bumper profits as war-driven refining margins hand Big Oil a windfall
BP reported quarterly profits of $8.46bn, an 18-year high, and Exxon and Chevron beat forecasts, as war in the Middle East pushed up oil prices and refining margins. A New York Times analysis cited by several outlets found more than 50 US oil and gas companies made over $130bn in profit between April and September.
Left 0 · Centre-left 5 · Centre 3 · Centre-right 4 · Right 2
ContextSources by leanVideoDeep diveFollow the moneyMore coverage
How each side framed it
Left-leaning outlets
Left-rated outlets headline it: “Big Oil Scores $56 Billion Windfall on War-Driven Refining Spike” (Bloomberg); “BP profits hit ‘obscene’ 18-year high as Iran war drives up oil refining margins” (The Guardian).
Centre outlets
Centre-rated outlets headline it: “Exxon, Chevron profits beat forecasts, refining margins surge during wars” (Reuters); “ExxonMobil and Chevron post bumper profits and warn on diesel supplies” (Financial Times).
Right-leaning outlets
Right-rated outlets headline it: “Oil majors reap bumper profits as Mideast war drives prices” (Breitbart); “Big Oil rakes in over $130B in profits as soaring gas prices squeeze consumers amid Iran war” (New York Post).
Context
The wider geopolitical and historical background, in our words, each point linked to the source it comes from. Background, not a verdict on today's story. How we write it.
Oil company profits rise when crude prices and refining margins rise.
- Refining margins, sometimes called crack spreads, are the gap between crude prices and the products made from it. Crack spread
- Governments, including the UK's in 2022, have sometimes imposed windfall taxes on energy companies' profits. Windfall tax
Checked 2026-10-31. Links were opened and returned a page that day.
Search for more (live results, not checked by us): Wikipedia search · Explainers (Google News search) · Background and history (Google News search)
Sources by lean
Balanced: the same number of articles from the left, the centre and the right (up to 3 each). The bar above still counts every rated outlet we found. Bias and factual ratings come from Media Bias/Fact Check. How we balance · All ratings.
Left 2
Centre 2
- Financial Times
ExxonMobil and Chevron post bumper profits and warn on diesel supplies (paywalled or blocks bots) - Reuters
Exxon, Chevron profits beat forecasts, refining margins surge during wars (paywall or login)
Showing 2 from each side of 14 rated outlets (L 5 / C 3 / R 6). Capped at 2 because that is all we found on the thinnest side. More coverage
Video
News reports from outlets with a bias rating, balanced like the articles: the same number from the left, the centre and the right. A side with no matching video is named, never padded. Every video was checked to exist on YouTube on the day; titles are the publishers' own. Links open YouTube; nothing from YouTube loads on this page. How we pick.
Left 1
Centre 0
No centre-rated outlet video found for this story. We don't fill the gap with an unrelated video.
Right 0
No right-rated outlet video found for this story. We don't fill the gap with an unrelated video.
Showing 1 from each side that has one; none found from the centre or right.
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Deep dive
The two opposites side by side, seeking to understand rather than judge. These are possible readings of the coverage, built from the articles linked on this page; they are not claims about anyone's motives. How we write it.
Seen from the left
“Trump called out Big Oil profits. Here’s how much their refining earnings have surged since” CNBC
A possible reading: war is handing windfalls to oil firms while households pay more.
Seen from the right
“Oil majors reap bumper profits as Mideast war drives prices” Breitbart
A possible reading: strong profits reflect markets working and fund investment and dividends.
Open questions
- How much of the profit comes from refining rather than production?
- How have fuel prices changed for consumers?
Follow the money
Not yet researched. We haven't yet looked at who gains or loses financially from this story, or who funds the main voices on each side. When we do, we check company filings, the Electoral Commission donations register, lobbying registers, annual reports, InfluenceMap and OpenSecrets, and we apply the same checks to every side. How we follow the money.
Who owns or funds the outlets covering this story (13 outlets)
| Outlet | Lean | Ownership & funding (MBFC) |
|---|---|---|
| Bloomberg | Centre-left | Michael R. Bloomberg is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP (The parent company of Bloomberg News). According to Investopedia, Bloomberg Terminal (remote software used to access financial information) is the most expensive among financial data providers. source |
| CNBC | Centre-left | CNBC is owned by NBC Universal, which Comcast owns. Comcast’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is Brian L. Roberts, founded by his father, Ralph J. source |
| NBC News | Centre-left | No ownership data found |
| The Guardian | Centre-left | The Guardian and its companion publication, the Sunday newspaper The Observer, are owned by Guardian Media Group plc (GMG). Scott Trust Limited was created in 1936 to ensure the editorial independence of the publications and owns Guardian Media Group plc (GMG). source |
| The Independent | Centre-left | The Independent is owned by Independent Print Limited, a company owned by the Lebedev family (Alexander Lebedev and his son Evgeny Lebedev). In 2017, Saudi Businessman Sultan Muhammad Abuljadayel bought a 30% stake in the Independent online newspaper. Advertising and subscription generate revenue for the paper..push({}); source |
| Financial Times | Centre | The Financial Times is owned by The Nikkei, a Japanese news and financial information company that publishes the leading financial paper, The Nikkei. The FT generates revenue through subscriptions, a hard paywall, and advertising..push({}); source |
| Reuters | Centre | In April 2008, the British company Reuters Group was acquired by Thomson Corporation and formed Thomson Reuters. source |
| New York Post | Centre-right | The New York Post is owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, which owns many conservative/sensational media outlets worldwide. The paper is funded through advertising, subscriptions, and newsstand sales. source |
| The Times | Centre-right | The Times and Sunday Times is owned by News UK (News Corp UK & Ireland Limited), which American News Corp owns. The owner and Executive Chairman of News Corp are Rupert Murdoch. Revenue is derived from advertising and subscription fees. source |
| Wall Street Journal | Centre-right | In 2007, The Bancroft family and relatives sold the Wall Street Journal to Rupert Murdoch for 5 billion dollars. Rupert Murdoch also purchased its parent company, Dow Jones & Co., through News Corporation. Subscriptions and advertising fund the Wall Street Journal. source |
| Washington Examiner | Centre-right | The Washington Examiner is owned by Clarity Media Group, owned by Philip Anschutz, an American billionaire entrepreneur who describes himself as a “conservative Christian.” Anschutz is also the owner of the right-leaning Weekly Standard and has donated millions of dollars to right-leaning causes, including anti-LGBT groups, such as the Family Research Council, which has been labeled a hate group. source |
| Breitbart | Right | After the death of Andrew Breitbart in 2012, Larry Solov became CEO and president of Breitbart News. In 2017, according to Politico, Larry Solov revealed the owner of Breitbart as “himself, founder Andrew Breitbart’s widow, Susie Breitbart, and the Republican mega-donor family, the Mercers.” Further, Solov also stated that he wants “to disclose as little as possible about financial and ownership structure.” source |
| The Telegraph | Right | Telegraph Media Group (TMG) owns The Telegraph, which is owned by Press Acquisitions Ltd., which in turn is owned by Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay. In 2004, Twin Brothers Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay acquired the Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Telegraph from the Canadian media company Hollinger Inc. for £665 million. For a complete list of Board members, see here. source |