Saudi Aramco net profit falls 25% as oil prices slide

Saudi Arabian state oil giant Aramco reported a 25% fall in first-quarter net profit on Tuesday (May 12)

With demand sapped and crude prices tumbling, the results came in below analyst estimates.

Brent crude prices fell 65% in the first quarter, before OPEC nations and allies agreed to cut supply by a record 9.7 million barrels per day.

Aramco's net profit fell to $16.64 billion.

This week Riyadh said it would deepen its output cuts by a further 1 million barrels per day.

The news drove crude prices almost three percent higher in early trade Tuesday.

But Aramco said it expects the impact of the global crisis on global energy demand and oil prices to weigh on earnings for the rest of the year.

The firm, which went public last year, still plans to acquire a stake in Saudi petrochemical maker SABIC for around $70 billion.

But sources told Reuters this week that the deal was likely to be restructured in light of the current situation.

Aramco said earlier on Tuesday that the acquisition is on track to close in the second quarter.