Oil prices fall to $43 as Shell earnings sink to 11-year low

Crude oil prices fell to the lowest point since April 2016, as Royal Dutch Shell posts the lowest one quarter earnings in 11 years.

Minutes after official US energy data was released, showing unexpected glut of oil in storage, the prices began to tumble.

Brent crude quickly dropped from around $44.90 a barrel to $43.68, falling by over two percent in less than an hour. The price fell further to $43.47.

After Shell announced its quarterly results, showing a 72 percent decline in profit, in one fiscal year, the oil prices slid further, with Brent crude touching $43.35 on Thursday.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) sank as low as $41.94 within the same period.

Shell shocked the market, which expected about 80 percent more earnings than posted.

Ben Van Beurden, Shell’s chief executive officer, blamed the development on oil prices, saying: “Lower oil prices continue to be a significant challenge across the business, particularly in the upstream.

He further revealed that the company’s second-quarter production was 3.51 million barrels of oil equivalent a day, less than major projections.

In June, Brent crude prices peaked at $52.54 per barrel, its highest point since October 2015.

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) basket price also fell to $40.49 a barrel Wednesday, 27 July 2016, from about $43 a week ago.

The Nigerian government has set a tentative benchmark of $42.5 per barrel of crude for the country’s 2016 budget – from $38 per barrel in 2016.