Royal Dutch Shell ( NYSE:RDS.A ) is making “significant progress” on selling another US$5 billion worth of assets, chief financial officer Simon Henry said on Thursday after the oil supermajor reported 2016 profits below analyst expectations. Shell’s current cost of supplies (CCS) – a key measure comparable with net income – came in at US$1.8 billion, excluding identified items, compared with US$1.6 billion for the fourth quarter 2015, the company said today. Full-year 2016 CCS earnings attributable to shareholders excluding identified items dropped to US$7.2 billion from US$11.4 billion in 2015. The fourth-quarter profit fell short of analyst estimates by around US$1 billion, according to Bloomberg . Shell was the third oil major in as many profit releases this earnings season so far that have missed analyst expectations, following Chevron and Exxon . Shell, however, had two brighter points in its earnings report: lowered debt and increased cash flow. […]