Note: Upstream refers to crude oil exploration, production, and other operations prior to refining. Downstream refers to refinery operations, product sales, and marketing. First-quarter 2015 financial results for globally integrated oil companies—ones that focus on both the exploration and production of crude oil (upstream) and the refining of crude oil into petroleum products (downstream)—show that total earnings were $22 billion (54%) lower than in first-quarter 2014. Lower crude oil prices contributed to a decline in profits in the upstream sector of $28 billion (80%) compared to first-quarter 2014. Profits in the downstream sector, however, were the largest for any quarter since third-quarter 2012, almost $6 billion (95%) higher than in first-quarter 2014, which offset some of the decline from the upstream segment. Crack spreads refer to the differences between wholesale petroleum product prices and crude oil prices, and they can […]