Saudi Aramco, the Saudi Arabian state oil company and one of the world's largest energy producers, reported a 26% jump in first-quarter profits, with earnings reaching $33.6 billion on revenues of $115.5 billion — up nearly 7% compared with the same period a year earlier. The surge came despite the company having to halt exports through its Gulf ports following the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz since the outbreak of the US-Iran war in late February.

The strait, a narrow waterway through which roughly one-fifth of the world's oil and gas normally passes, has been at the centre of the conflict, with recent fighting reported in and around the waterway after US President Donald Trump announced — and then paused — a naval mission aimed at reopening it. With Gulf exports blocked, Aramco has relied entirely on its east-west pipeline, which runs across the Arabian Peninsula to the Red Sea port of Yanbu. The company confirmed the pipeline is now operating at its maximum capacity of 7 million barrels per day, down from the 11.1 million barrels per day Aramco was producing in late 2025.

The disruption has sent global energy prices sharply higher. Brent crude, the international benchmark, has been trading at around $100 a barrel — roughly 40% above pre-conflict levels — and recently hit a four-year high of $119.50 a barrel. Other major energy companies have also benefited: Shell separately reported nearly one billion euros in additional profit in the same quarter, attributing the gain to the conflict.

Aramco's chief executive Amin Nasser cautioned that the market will not quickly recover even if the strait reopens.