Oil concern Royal Dutch Shell announced on Thursday that its net profit over the second quarter fell 70% to $2.3bn compared to the same period a year earlier.

Company results, excluding one-off items, was $3.15bn, higher than analysts forecast, reports news agency Reuters.
Oil and gas production dropped to 2.9 million barrels of a day in the second quarter, down from 3.3 million last year.
Shell said it has cut $700m in costs in the first half of the year and has cut 20 percent of senior management positions since July 1, adding that there would be substantial further staff reductions, reports Reuters. The company has 102,000 employees.
In a statement Shell CEO Peter Voser said: ‘Our second quarter results were affected by the weak global economy. This weakness is creating a difficult environment both in Upstream and Downstream…
‘Conditions are likely to remain challenging for some time, and we are not banking on a quick recovery. Shell is adapting to this new situation, and we must do more. We are sharpening our focus on delivery and affordability.’