American oil and gas major ExxonMobil has reported net income of $10.89 billion for the first quarter of 2008, a 17% increase, compared to $9.28 billion for the same period of 2007.
The company reported that earnings per share were up 25% to $2.03 for the first quarter reflecting strong earnings and the reduced number of shares outstanding, compared to $1.62 for the same period of 2007.
Upstream earnings were $8.78 billion, up $2.74 billion from the first quarter of 2007. On an oil-equivalent basis, production decreased 5.6% from the first quarter of 2007.
Rex Tillerson, chairman of Exxonmobil, said: Higher crude oil and natural gas realizations, driven by record worldwide crude oil prices, were partly offset by lower refining and chemical margins, lower production volumes and higher operating costs.
Spending on capital and exploration projects was $5.5 billion in the first quarter, up 30% from last year, as we continued to actively invest in projects to bring additional crude oil, natural gas and finished products to market.