On any given day, the share price movements of Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) and BP (BP.) tend to move in tandem with expectations for the oil price. Tuesday 1 November, when both of London's oil majors announced third-quarter results, proved an exception.
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2,200p
Shell's shares rose 4 per cent on news that production in the three months to September had increased by a quarter to 3.6m barrels of oil equivalent a day, thanks to strong output from the assets acquired from BG. This resulted in a 120 per cent increase in net operating cash before tax, which together with lower impairment charges for the period meant underlying profit of $2.8bn (£2.3bn) for the period, smashing analyst expectations.