Big Oil’s Big Bet On Petrochemicals Is A Flop

A couple of days ago, we reported that Big Oil companies Exxon Mobil Corp.(NYSE:XOM) and Chevron Corp. (NYSE:CVX) were set to post huge profit declines mainly due to weaker oil and gas prices compared to a year ago. Analysts expect Exxon to post Q2 2023 earnings per share (EPS) of $2.04, a huge 50.4% drop from EPS of $4.14 in the second quarter of 2022. The company’s earnings dropped to about $7.8 billion from $17.85 in the year-ago quarter in large part due to lower natural gas prices and weaker oil refining margins.…