WASHINGTON (Realist English). The US‑Iran conflict, which began in February 2026, has generated staggering profits for oil corporations. The six largest energy companies in the world earned $79.4 billion in net profits in the second quarter of 2026. Brent crude averaged about $104 a barrel — 50% higher than a year ago.
However, these figures have become a political headache for President Donald Trump, who launched the war himself and now must explain to voters why the largest corporations are getting richer while Americans are paying nearly 40% more for gasoline.
Super‑profits: $535 million a day
US oil giants posted staggering growth:
- ExxonMobil — $14.5 billion in profit, more than double the previous year. This is the company’s best quarterly performance since 2022.
- Chevron — $12.1 billion, a nearly 400% increase. This is the highest quarterly result in the company’s history.
- Shell — nearly $10 billion, the second‑largest quarterly result in its history.
- BP — $5.73 billion, the highest since 2022.
- Saudi Aramco — $33.4 billion, up 33%.
Together, ExxonMobil and Chevron earned $26.6 billion in a single quarter, cementing their status as the primary beneficiaries of the Iran conflict.
The five leading oil “supermajors” — BP, Shell, TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil and Chevron — posted combined profits of $48 billion over three months. That is $535 million a day, $22 million an hour, or $6,000 every second.
Trump vs. Big Oil: a public spanking
On Monday, Trump launched an unprecedented attack on oil corporations. “They’re making too much money off of a shortage. I don’t like that,” the president said in the Oval Office.
“Chevron — too much money. ExxonMobil — too much money,” Trump listed. He demanded that the companies “give some of that back to the public” and lower retail fuel prices.
This move marked a notable break from Trump’s usual alliance with the oil industry. Earlier that same day, the president publicly scolded Chevron CEO Mike Wirth for failing to thank the Trump administration for its support of the industry.
Trump also ordered the Justice Department to investigate possible price gouging in the retail energy sector. At the end of June, he demanded that gasoline retailers immediately lower prices.
Political headache: the electoral context
Trump’s criticism of the oil industry is not just rhetoric. Behind it lie electoral calculations: the November midterm elections are just three months away, and polls suggest significant Democratic gains in Congress.
The average price of a gallon of gasoline on Monday was $4.11. That is nearly 40% higher than the $2.98 drivers were paying on the eve of the war. Since the start of the conflict, fuel prices have risen by 37%.
The irony is that it is precisely the war Trump started that created the conditions for oil companies’ super‑profits. The president, who positions himself as a defender of ordinary Americans, is now forced to publicly argue with an industry that his own policies have enriched.
From ‘almost criminal’ to ‘unacceptable’ profits
Environmentalists and activists did not let the record earnings of oil giants go unnoticed.
Clémence Dubois, campaign director at the international environmental group 350.org, said: “Chevron and Exxon are profiting from a model of chaos, leaving ordinary people to foot the bills and the devastating consequences. These profits seem almost criminal.”
Flossie Boyd of Global Witness called it “scandalous” that oil giants “are profiting from our grief.” She urged governments to introduce fair taxation of Big Oil to finance climate change protection.
Even despite Trump’s public criticism, Chevron shares fell nearly 2%, while Exxon traded slightly lower — investors reacted to the president’s remarks and falling oil prices amid hopes for negotiations.
Trump’s paradox is that he has become a hostage to his own war. The conflict with Iran, intended to demonstrate strength, has brought record profits to oil corporations and record gasoline prices for Americans. The president, who has always been an ally of Big Oil, is now publicly demanding that it “give the money back to the people.” The question is whether his rhetoric can convince voters before November — or whether the oil companies’ super‑profits will become a symbol of a war that enriched corporations at the expense of ordinary Americans.
