Shell cuts dividend for first time since World War II as oil demand collapses
Source: CNN
London (CNN Business)Royal Dutch Shell has slashed its dividend for the first time since World War II after profits were wiped out by a historic collapse in oil demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The Anglo-Dutch firm, one of the world's largest oil companies, said in a statement Thursday that it will cut its quarterly dividend to 16 cents per share, from 47 cents previously. It posted a net loss of $24 million for the first quarter of 2020, compared with a profit of $6 billion in the same period a year ago.
Shell had furiously tried to avoid slashing its dividend — a key draw for investors — but the coronavirus pandemic has made it crucial for the company to preserve cash, as demand for oil from airlines, factories and motorists evaporates. The International Energy Agency said in a report Thursday that the drop in global energy use this year is like wiping out demand from all of India, a country of 1.3 billion people and the world's third biggest consumer. Demand for oil, gas and coal had been hammered, it added. Only renewable energy was proving resilient.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/30/investing/shell-dividend-cut/index.html
Groan. This was our biggest holding, and biggest dividend payer. I think it's time to go from a 2-car family to a 1-car family.
= new reply since forum marked as read
Not my biggest holding or biggest dividend payer, but a nod to my dad who was an industrial chemist who worked his entire life for Shell Chemical.
Not selling, though. There will be demand for oil for the rest of my lifetime (I'm 69), and it will recover, but it might take a year or more.
