The world’s top 11 energy traders made around $77 billion in earnings last year, more than double the previous year, as they benefited from extreme price volatility following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Bernstein analysts said on Wednesday.
For Shell, that equates to 20% of total earning last year, when net profit reached a record of $40 billion, and 16% of BP’s earnings in 2022, when net profit also hit a record of $28 billion. The three largest private commodity traders Vitol, Gunvor and Trafigura made around $28 billion in earnings.Trading operations help companies weather volatility in oil, gas and power prices by buying and selling commodities and at the same time using financial instruments to hedge trades and bet on price changes.