{"text":[[{"start":6.8,"text":"Glencore’s earnings from trading commodities doubled in the first half of the year as war in the Middle East supercharged profit levels across the world’s biggest oil trading firms."}],[{"start":16.6,"text":"The Swiss company said in a production report on Wednesday that it expected earnings of $3.3bn in its “marketing” division, which includes energy trading, in the six months to the end of June."}],[{"start":28.450000000000003,"text":"The figure would be the second-highest since the bumper profits reported in 2022 when Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine sparked an energy crisis, and $1bn more than analysts’ expectations."}],[{"start":41.800000000000004,"text":"Other oil trading firms including Trafigura and Mercuria also reported exceptionally strong profits during the early days of the US-Israeli war against Iran, which began in late February."}],[{"start":53.2,"text":"The conflict in the Middle East has caused huge volatility in energy markets and surges in the price of fuels such as diesel and petrol — market conditions under which oil traders generally thrive."}],[{"start":65.4,"text":"Trafigura reported bumper profits of $4.1bn in the six months to the end of March, boosted by the war in the Middle East at the end of the period. The company paid a record dividend during the first half."}],[{"start":78.45,"text":"Mercuria’s net profit doubled during the six-month period to the end of March and the company reported its second-highest first-half profit in its history."}],[{"start":86.55,"text":"Glencore, which is also a big producer of coal and copper, reports first-half earnings next week. "}],[{"start":93,"text":"The Swiss group is among the world’s largest energy traders, handling about 4.2mn barrels of oil equivalent per day last year. "}],[{"start":101.3,"text":"In its production report, the company said copper production was up 15 per cent year-on-year, although it slightly lowered its guidance for steelmaking coal during the period. "}],[{"start":112.8,"text":"Glencore has been working to expand its copper production portfolio and held deal talks with mining group Rio Tinto this year, although they were ultimately unsuccessful. "}],[{"start":122.75,"text":"“We expect a positive reaction to the . . . production report, driven by better-than-expected marketing performance,” wrote Barclays analyst Ian Rossouw in a note to clients. Glencore shares rose 4 per cent in early trading in London. "}],[{"start":136.75,"text":"Ben Davis of RBC noted that it was “curious that Glencore is not giving further guidance on marketing for the remainder of the year”. "}],[{"start":145.35,"text":"The quick-changing nature of the war in the Middle East has made the outlook highly uncertain for energy traders. "}],[{"start":159.55,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1785318954_3913.mp3"}