Shell posts best quarterly profit in four years as Iran war boosts oil and gas prices

British energy major Shell on Thursday reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter profit, benefitting from the jump in oil and gas prices amid the sprawling Middle East conflict.The oil giant posted adjusted earnings of $9.84 billion for the April to June period, comfortably beating analyst expectations of $8.79 billion, according to an LSEG-compiled consensus. A separate, company-provided analyst forecast had put Shell's expected second-quarter profit at $8.92 billion.Shell reported adjusted earnings of $4.26 billion over the same period a year ago and $6.92 billion over the first three months of 2026.It marks Shell's best quarterly result since the second quarter of 2022, when the company reported earnings of $11.47 billion as oil and gas prices surged in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine."Volatility is the new normal," Shell CEO Wael Sawan told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Thursday. "What we have been trying to build is a company that is able to thrive through volatility. So, you're absolutely right, of course, the macro is such that the commodity prices are high and that provides a very strong tailwind for our results," Sawan said. "But there are two key ...