Number Of The Day | $5.7 billion | 4 August 2026
$5.7 billion is today’s Number of the Day. BP’s core quarterly profit more than doubled in the April-to-June period as the Middle East conflict disrupted energy markets and lifted oil and gas prices. Gareth Edwards and Francis Herd unpack how integrated energy companies can earn across extraction, trading, refining and retail, and why even a free-market president can start asking whether profits have gone too far. BP separately reported profit after tax of $3.91 billion, while its $5.7 billion figure reflects a core profit measure that removes certain accounting items.
The story then reaches South Africa. International oil movements feed into the country’s regulated monthly fuel-price cycle, while Sasol’s domestic production provides a limited supply buffer rather than cheaper fuel. The episode asks the question sitting behind the windfall: when conflict makes energy more valuable, who captures the upside and who absorbs the cost?
Catch up on all Number of the Day episodes here: https://www.enca.com/number-day-podcast
Chapter List
(00:00) BP’s $5.7 Billion Profit Surge
(00:58) Why Higher Oil Reaches South African Pumps
(01:30) How Storage and Futures Create Profit Opportunities
(02:53) Even Trump Says Oil Companies Make Too Much
(03:42) Where Energy Companies Make Their Money
(04:40) Why Sasol Is Under Environmental Scrutiny
(05:41) What Is Causing Johannesburg’s Sulphur Smell?
(07:10) Sasol’s 30% Fuel-Supply Buffer
