Last week, ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) reported Q 2 2021 earnings in one of Big Oil's most anticipated scorecards this earnings season. The United States' largest oil and gas company posted stellar earnings that proved that the worst for the U.S. shale industry might finally be in the rearview mirror. Exxon's Q2 earnings swung to a $4.7B profit from a loss of $1.1B in the year-earlier quarter while revenues more than doubled to $67.7B (+107.7% Y/Y), with both metrics exceeding Wall Street's expectations.

It's not just rising U.S. stockpiles that have thrown the markets off-kilter. News that the COVID-19 Delta variant is running riot in China does not augur well for the global markets.

Traffic congestion in Beijing has declined by 30 percent over the past week, and is falling in other parts of the country as well, as the spread of a new coronavirus variant gains traction, threatening the outlook for oil demand, Bloomberg reports.

As the Delta variant became more prominent in July, initially in India and the U.K. and then gradually across the rest of the globe, many countries were forced back into lockdown or experienced other restrictions to work and movement. This led several experts to speculate that oil and gas demand would inevitably be driven down once again in the face of global restrictions limiting travel and industry. However, as the U.K. reduced all restrictions in mid-July, and several other countries continue to ease lockdowns, this anticipated dip in demand did not hit the industry as hard as expected.

The Real Reason Big Oil Is Betting On The Hydrogen Boom

US tight oil operators have for several months been depleting their inventory of drilled but uncompleted wells (DUCs) and, amid a slower drilling response, the number of ‘live’ DUCs in the country’s major oil regions slumped to 2,381 wells in June 2021, the lowest level since 2013, a Rystad Energy analysis reveals.

Much was made about the impact of Biden's infrastructure bill on the U.S. oil and gas industry, but details suggest there is nothing to worry about.

Nigeria’s oil industry has been confronted with a plethora of challenges – endless litigation, social unrest, majors regularly mulling a country exit, and all this against the background of a genuine societal demand to make oil revenues more equitable, more accessible and transparent.

Mergers and acquisitions are how an industry normally handles tough times. Asset prices drop, some companies can no longer survive on their own and become targets for those with the means to grow through takeovers.

WTI Falls Below $70 On Global Rise In COVID Cases

Crude oil markets have been jittery lately as additional OPEC+ output counters expectations of continued strong demand and coincides with concerns about the resurgence of Covid-19 in key markets. Yet some believe oil could still hit $80 a barrel.

Oil prices fell early on Monday to start August with losses after posting a fourth consecutive month of gains in July. (2021)