Exxon Mobil Corp on Tuesday reported its smallest quarterly profit in more than a decade and said it will cut 2016 spending by one-quarter and suspend share repurchases as it copes with a prolonged downturn in crude prices. Shares of Exxon, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, fell 2.2 percent in premarket trading to $74.59, hit by a more than 4 percent slide in the price of crude oil.
Crude oil prices have dropped about 70 percent from the 2014 high over $100 barrel. Current prices at around $30 barrel have triggered a wave of spending cuts as oil companies slash investment in new wells and projects to conserve cash. Exxon sees capital spending at around $23.2 billion this year, a 25 percent drop from 2015. "While our financial results reflect the challenging environment, we remain focused on the business fundamentals, including project execution and effective cost management," Rex Tillerson, the chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.