BP profits soar to record $13.4bn

Oil giant BP today unveils a massive 23 per cent rise in its profits. The soaring price of crude oil has given the company a record $13.44bn (£6.7bn) replacement cost profit during the first half of this year. In the same period last year, the figure was $10.93bn.

The bulk of the profit stems from BP's exploration and production division, but the company stressed that despite the high result, it was struggling to restore earnings from its refineries in the US. Meanwhile, a dispute over the ownership of TNK-BP, a joint venture with Russian investors, rumbles on. Robert Dudley, chief executive of the company's Russian operations fled to Europe last week, and is running the business from a secret location.