(Reuters) – Phillips 66 reported a sharp fall in second-quarter profit on Wednesday, the latest U.S. refiner to bear the brunt of a decline in margins from last year’s sky-high levels when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine squeezed fuel supplies.
Refiners’ margins were beefed up last year as a rebound in fuel demand collided with a supply crunch caused by pandemic-era refinery closings and disruptions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Crude prices and supplies have normalized since then.
The company said realized margins fell to $15.32 per barrel in the second quarter from $28.62 per barrel, a year earlier.
The Houston-based refiner reported earnings of $1.7 billion, or $3.72 per share, for the three months ended June 30, compared with $3.2 billion, or $6.53 per share, in the year-ago quarter.
(Reporting by Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
