Opening up the wallet: Rex Tillerson
ExxonMobil sticks to spending plans
US supermajor ExxonMobil said today it would stick to its planned capital spending range for the next five years despite the steep decline in oil prices that has prompted many producers to cut back.
The oil giant said it would spend between $25 billion to $30 billion per year as part of its effort to meet long-term growth in world demand.
"ExxonMobil's business is strong, and so is our commitment to investing through the business cycle," company boss Rex Tillerson told an analysts meeting.
ExxonMobil's capital spending was about $26 billion in 2008, up about 28% from 2007. The company also spent $32 billion in share buybacks last year.
ExxonMobil set a company and US record for annual profits in 2008, racking up $45.2 billion in earnings in the year that saw oil prices skyrocket to $147 per barrel.
But oil prices have crashed nearly 70% to $45 a barrel since then as the economic downturn has eroded demand in many key regions, including the US.
ExxonMobil shares were down 2.5% at $64.01 in morning New York Stock Exchange trade, a Reuters report said.
At Wednesday's close, the stock had slumped nearly 18 percent so far this year, but was the second-best performer behind McDonald's Corp in the Dow Jones Industrials index <.DJI> over the past six months, with a 17.5 percent decline in that period.
The stock was also the second-best performer in the Standard & Poor's Energy Index <.GSPE> over the last six months and easily outperformed the index, which was down 42 percent in that period.