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| BP's profits edge lower but beat forecasts | BP's profits edge lower but beat forecasts |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Oil giant BP saw profits edge lower in the first three months of the year. | Oil giant BP saw profits edge lower in the first three months of the year. |
| Underlying replacement cost profit, which strips out the effect of oil price movements, was $4.2bn (£2.6bn) - down from $4.7bn for the same period a year ago. | Underlying replacement cost profit, which strips out the effect of oil price movements, was $4.2bn (£2.6bn) - down from $4.7bn for the same period a year ago. |
| However, the result beat analysts' forecasts of $3.27bn. | However, the result beat analysts' forecasts of $3.27bn. |
| When the one-off gain from BP's sale of its interest in joint venture TNK-BP is included, the firm made $16.6bn in the quarter. | When the one-off gain from BP's sale of its interest in joint venture TNK-BP is included, the firm made $16.6bn in the quarter. |
| "These results represent a strong start to 2013 across all of our businesses," said BP chief executive Bob Dudley. | "These results represent a strong start to 2013 across all of our businesses," said BP chief executive Bob Dudley. |
| Asset sales | |
| BP attributed the better-than-expected result to a greater share of new production coming on stream from major projects in Angola and the North Sea, helping to compensate for the production it has lost due to asset sales. | |
| The company has been selling assets in order to raise funds to cover the costs arising from the Deepwater Horizon disaster. | |
| The firm said the cumulative cost of the Gulf of Mexico spill, one of the worst environmental disasters in US history, remained at $42.2bn. | |
| Underlying production of oil and gas, excluding the impact of asset sales, rose 2% in the quarter compared with the same period a year ago. | |
| However, BP said that total oil and gas production was down 5% on a year earlier, primarily due to the sale of its stake in the TNK-BP Russian joint venture. | |
| It also warned that production was likely to fall further in the second quarter of the year due to asset sales. | |
| As well as the sale of its TNK-BP stake, BP also sold its Texas City refinery in the first quarter. | |
| BP said its exploration projects remained on track, and it planned to drill 15 to 25 exploration wells by the end of the year. | |
| BP is carrying out a share buyback programme - aimed at returning $8bn to shareholders over the next 12-18 months. | BP is carrying out a share buyback programme - aimed at returning $8bn to shareholders over the next 12-18 months. |