Occidental Petroleum Corp said its first-quarter earnings rose more than 50 per cent as the US oil company reaped the benefits of record crude prices.

Oil prices have surged since 2002 due to demand from emerging economies, supply concerns and the weak dollar. For most of the first quarter of 2008 prices were at or near record levels.
Benchmark US oil prices averaged about $98 a barrel during the quarter, up nearly 70 per cent from last year.
The company took in an average of $86.75 per barrel of oil it produced in the quarter, up from $51.67 a barrel in the year-earlier period.
On  the New York Mercantile Exchange in afternoon trading June crude  was $116.05 per barrel. Net income rose to $1.85 billion, or $2.23 a share, from $1.21 billion, or $1.43 a share, a year earlier.
Excluding $27 million in one-time gains from tax refunds and sales, the company earned $2.20 a share, well above analysts’ average estimate of $1.94 a share.
“Pound for pound, Oxy generates more profits from production than any other company in the industry,” said Oppenheimer & Co analyst Fadel Gheit, who said the company’s shares were undervalued. “They are flush with cash ... They are actually tightening screws and cutting headcount,” he said. Sales rose 50 per cent to $6.02 billion. Natural gas prices were also higher. Occidental’s average realized price for the quarter rose 27.7 per cent to $8.15 per thousand cubic feet.