Shell puts heat on BP

Royal Dutch Shell added to the woes of its arch-rival BP yesterday by shrugging off lower oil prices and a fall in production to deliver record profits of US$6.9 billion ($9.4 billion) for the first quarter of the year.

The 14 per cent profit increase compares with a 17 per cent slump in BP earnings for the first three months and took the markets by surprise since most analysts assumed Shell would also report a decline.

- Agencies