Saudi Aramco reported a 34.6 per cent increase in third-quarter net profit, as elevated oil prices boosted earnings despite repeated attacks on the kingdom’s energy infrastructure and disruptions to regional shipping routes.
The state-controlled oil giant said net profit reached 135.9 billion riyals ($36.2 billion) in the three months to September, compared with approximately 101 billion riyals during the same period last year. Adjusted net income, excluding exceptional items, stood at 116.9 billion riyals.
The results come as conflict involving Iran, the United States and Israel has disrupted energy markets, pushed up crude prices and increased pressure on global supply chains. Energy companies have benefited from higher prices and stronger refining margins, although security risks have raised concerns about the reliability of supplies.
Aramco President and Chief Executive Amin H. Nasser said geopolitical uncertainty and attacks on major energy facilities had intensified the global supply crisis during the quarter.
“Geopolitical uncertainty and attacks on key energy facilities continued to amplify the global energy supply crisis in the third quarter of 2026, with serious implications for global energy security,” he said.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi group has repeatedly targeted Saudi oil tankers, pipelines, storage facilities and refineries since hostilities resumed in July. The group has intensified its attacks in recent weeks, while Iran and the Houthis have also disrupted shipping through the strategically important straits of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb.
Last month, the Houthis claimed responsibility for an attack on Aramco’s headquarters in the kingdom’s east. Saudi officials confirmed that a building in the area housing the company’s operations centre had been hit. Two Aramco employees also told AFP that a tower at the complex was struck.
Aramco’s third-quarter adjusted earnings were below the median analyst estimate of $30.66 billion, based on forecasts from 12 analysts. The company had reported a 44 per cent annual increase in second-quarter net profit to 122.6 billion riyals.
Robert Mogielnicki, a research fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute, said the latest results were likely to look stronger than a year earlier, when oil prices were lower, but less favourable compared with the previous quarter.
The conflict, which began on February 28 with US and Israeli strikes on Iran, has also prompted countries to draw down strategic oil reserves and contributed to inflation. Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian energy facilities have added to supply concerns, with Moscow restricting exports of certain products, including petrol and diesel.
US naval escorts have helped commercial vessels move through the Strait of Hormuz. US Central Command said last month that more than 1.5 billion barrels of crude had been exported through the waterway with its assistance since the summer, alongside the passage of more than 3,000 commercial vessels over six months.
Despite strong oil revenues, Saudi Arabia faces growing fiscal pressure. The kingdom has raised its projected 2026 budget deficit to 245 billion riyals, equivalent to 4.9 per cent of gross domestic product, from an earlier estimate of 165 billion riyals.
The Finance Ministry expects the economy to contract by 3.6 per cent this year, while the International Monetary Fund has forecast a 3.3 per cent decline. Riyadh expects the deficit to narrow to 191 billion riyals in 2027 as it continues spending on economic diversification.
