Oil and gas giants Shell and Total, two of the world's largest energy companies, both reported a big jump in first quarter profits on Thursday.
Why it matters: The earnings show the fruits of the oil price recovery in recent months — with prices now around their highest levels in over three years thanks to lower global stockpiles, geopolitical tensions and other forces.
How they fared: Shell reported over $5.3 billion in profits, a 42% rise from the same period last year.
France-based Total, meanwhile, reported a $2.9 billion haul, which is a 13% rise. Its combined oil and gas production reached a new quarterly record of 2.7 million barrels of oil-equivalent per day, thanks to ramping up projects like Russia's Yamal LNG project, as well as its acquisition of Maersk Oil.
