LONDON – Royal Dutch Shell dove into a net loss of US$21.7 billion (RM88 billion) in 2020, the oil giant announced today, as the coronavirus pandemic slashed global energy demand.
The Anglo-Dutch group’s net loss compares to a net profit of US$15.8 billion in 2019, it said in a statement.
Shell’s result is similar to British rival BP, which on Tuesday reported a 2020 net loss of US$20.3 billion.
Both companies are axing thousands of jobs in response to the economic fallout from the pandemic.
After governments worldwide closed their doors and airlines grounded planes towards the end of last year’s first quarter, oil prices dropped off a cliff, even briefly turning negative.
Prices then rebounded sharply, however, and they soared on Tuesday to pre-pandemic levels on the brightening economic outlook as more progress was reported on vaccines. – AFP, February 4, 2021
