Oil Companies’ Profits Jump: The huge fuel...

Oil Companies’ Profits Jump: The huge fuel demands of Operation Desert Storm fattened the profits of the nation’s 18 major oil companies in the first three months of 1991, with income 18% above 1990 levels, the government said. A key factor in the heftier earnings was a surge in demand accompanied by a dramatic decline in crude prices, the Energy Information Administration said. Chevron, Exxon, Mobil and Texaco accounted for most of the increased profits from foreign refining and marketing, the agency said. All have big refineries in the Far East.