Exxon CEO sees crude prices recovering
Reuters Story - April 29, 1998 11:02
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DALLAS, April 29 (Reuters) - Exxon Corp Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer Lee R. Raymond said Wednesday he
expects crude oil prices to recover from their current low
levels and that he was optimistic about future industry growth.
"Crude prices have historically fluctuated, and I believe
that they will recover from current levels," Raymond told
shareholders at an annual meeting in Dallas, although he did
not say when he thought prices would rise, or by how much.
He said he expected the Asian economies to return to
"robust growth" in the near future and the world economy to
continue its growth, boosting energy demand.
"I see good reason for optimism," he said. "Oil and gas in
particular will be needed, and we expect demand to increase at
around 2 to 3 percent a year. Petrochemicals should grow even
faster at 4 to 5 percent a year on average."
Despite a dramatic decline in crude prices in recent
months, he was optimistic about Exxon's upstream operations.
"In exploration and production, the prospects for
profitable growth appear better today than they have been in
more than 20 years. Technological advancements and recent
decisions by many countries to open up and encourage foreign
investment have greatly expanded prospective areas," he said.
He pointed to Exxon's exploration and production ventures in
West Africa, the former Soviet Union, the Gulf of Mexico and
South America as reasons for optimism going forward.
"As fields come on stream from both established and new
areas, we expect steady increases in production well into the
next century," Raymond said.
The world's oil companies upstream results have been hit by
a sharp decline in crude prices but Exxon, like some other
integrated oil companies, has been able to cushion the blow
with strong results in its refining and marketing operations
and its chemicals unit.
Raymond said Exxon's chemical unit has shown sales and
earnings growth above the industry average and he expects that
trend to continue. He also predicted additional gains in its
refining and marketing businesses. |
