Saudi Aramco reported a 35% jump in third-quarter profit on Tuesday, as the war in the Middle East kept crude prices high and strong refining margins lifted earnings, even as the kingdom’s energy facilities came under repeated attack.
The world’s largest oil company said net profit reached $36.25 billion for the three months to the end of September, up from $26.9 billion in the same period a year earlier. The increase was driven by higher crude prices and a gain from the sale of its stake in a Malaysian refining venture, but profit was lower than the $32.7 billion recorded in the second quarter as oil prices eased from their yearly highs.
On an adjusted basis, which strips out the Malaysian stake sale and other one-off items, net income rose 9% to $31.2 billion, beating the median analyst forecast of $30.66 billion. Aramco sold its oil for an average of $95.20 a barrel during the quarter, compared with $70.10 a year earlier and $108.10 in the second quarter.
The strongest contribution came from refining. Adjusted earnings before interest and tax in Aramco’s downstream business, which turns crude into fuels and petrochemicals, rose 234% to $10.3 billion as margins strengthened sharply. Free cash flow climbed to $28.2 billion from $23.6 billion a year earlier, and the board declared a third-quarter base dividend of $21.9 billion, up 3.5% on the year, to be paid in the fourth quarter.
Chief executive Amin Nasser said the conflict continued to weigh heavily on global energy security. “Geopolitical uncertainty and attacks on key energy facilities continued to amplify the global energy supply crisis in the third quarter of 2026, with serious implications for global energy security,” he said in a statement.
Aramco said production from the Zuluf offshore field began in October and is set to reach up to 600,000 barrels a day by the end of 2026, while the second phase of the Jafurah gas project is due in 2027. The results come as Saudi Arabia raised its 2026 budget deficit forecast to 245 billion riyals, or 4.9% of GDP, and the International Monetary Fund expects the Saudi economy to contract by 3.3% this year.
Sources: Reuters, “Aramco posts 34.5% rise in third-quarter profit” (https://www.tradingview.com/news/reuters.com,2026:newsml_L3N46K0DE:0-aramco-posts-34-5-rise-in-third-quarter-profit/); Saudi Aramco, Q3 2026 results (https://www.aramco.com/-/media/publications/corporate-reports/reports-and-presentations/2026/q3/saudi-aramco-q3-2026-interim-report-english.pdf).
