Shell Soars on Oil Price Boom with $10.8 Billion Profit Boost

British energy giant Shell has reported a massive surge in profits due to soaring oil prices. The company's net profit tripled to $10.8 billion in the second quarter of this year, compared to $3.6 billion in the same period last year.

The increase is largely attributed to the ongoing Middle East conflict, which has disrupted global supplies and driven up crude futures. Shell's revenue also jumped 45% to $96.4 billion in the second quarter.

However, the company noted that higher realised prices were partly offset by lower volumes, mainly due to the impact of the conflict. Shell's gas production slumped to 631,000 barrels of oil equivalent daily from 909,000 barrels per day in the first quarter, following damage to the world's largest liquefied natural gas hub in Qatar.

Shell's chief executive Wael Sawan said that the company's operational performance enabled very strong results during a quarter of severe disruption in global energy markets. The company also announced a new share buyback program that will return $3 billion to shareholders.