Canadian Natural Resources gained less than expected in Q4
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd (CNQ.TO) suffered in the last quarter of 2022. On Thursday, the data showed that the company missed investors’ expectations for Q4 profit. Severe winter weather hindered its production. Declining liquid prices also weighed on the firm.
In mid-December, winter storm Elliott damaged parts of the United States and Canada. It hit several oil production sites. Canadian Natural Resources had to stop production due to equipment failures for a while. Consequently, the company’s production decreased by 1.5%. It reported only 1.29 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in the fourth quarter of 2022.
In addition, the crude oil market has been extremely volatile in recent months, with prices often plunging low. The Western sanctions on Russia due to the latter’s invasion of Ukraine worried traders. High inflation over the major global economies hasn’t helped matters. Investors feared that all of that would affect energy demand and weaken the global economy. Consequently, benchmark Brent crude prices plunged by more than 2% in the October-December quarter.
Canadian Natural Resources announced that its Q4 liquids realized price dropped by almost 5% to C$69.34 per barrel. Moreover, Alberta-based company Calgary stated that it only got net earnings of C$1.96 per share for the quarter. That’s much below compared to analysts’ average estimate of C$2.27 per share.
Meanwhile, Russia is trying to extend its capital controls
Russia’s central bank plans to extend capital controls on transfers abroad and cash withdrawals of foreign currency. On Thursday, Governor Elvira Nabiullina stated that officials were committed to this plan despite continued pressure on the economy.
In 2022, Russia issued strict control on currency operations in the country. The government made that decision in response to Western sanctions over the war in Ukraine. The EU considerably limited Russian residents’ ability to transfer money abroad.
According to Nabiullina, many of these restrictions had been eased or lifted, but current economic conditions forced the authorities to maintain them for the near future.
