Trafigura reported on Thursday a jump in net profit, offering the first glimpse into how trading houses have profited in the Iran war, and potentially challenging rival Vitol for the spot of the world’s most profitable commodities merchant.
The US-Israel war with Iran has created the world’s largest oil supply disruption ever, opening opportunities for trading houses to exploit fuel shortages around the world but also exposing them to big financial risks due to the sheer size of the disruption.
Trafigura’s results for October 2025 to March 2026 suggest the world’s second-largest commodity trader by volume has navigated the turmoil well, reporting net profit of $4.1 billion.
First-half profit exceeded its full-year 2025 profit of $2.7 billion, which it said was driven by broad contributions across oil, metals, gas and power.
The firm’s record for an annual profit was 2023, when it made $7.4 billion, in the first half of that year its profit was $5.5 billion.
Vitol, the top independent oil trader in the world, made roughly $2 billion in profit in its first quarter from January to March, Bloomberg News reported. Vitol does not formally disclose full financial results including profit.
Trafigura traded 8.7 million barrels per day of oil and refined fuels, natural gas and LNG in its first half, compared to 6.6 million bpd in the full-year 2025.
Trafigura kept up high dividend payments, with $3.05 billion allocated to shareholders in the first half, from $2.9 billion in the 2025 full year.
Complexity and cost drive performance
Commodity traders such as Trafigura and Vitol are working at the forefront of the oil supply crisis, thriving on volatility and exploiting market dislocations by moving commodities from surplus to deficit regions.
“Our results are driven by the complexity and cost of delivering those solutions, rather than by elevated commodity prices,” said Trafigura CEO Richard Holtum.
Oil prices surged in the wake of the Iran war, touching a year-to-date high of $126 on April 30, from around $70 pre-war, but have since fallen back to around $95.
Trafigura said that its financial first-quarter up to the end of December, prior to the beginning of the war in Iran, was its second-strongest first quarter on record.
Rival Gunvor said it had made the equivalent of its 2025 gross profit, $1.63 billion, in the first quarter of this year, after CEO Gary Pedersen called a pick-up in “constructive volatility” late last year.
Performance has “continued to be good” in its second half so far, Trafigura said, however the external environment is difficult to forecast given political tensions and market volatility.
“In a volatile market our customers need us more than ever,” group chief financial officer Stephan Jansma said.
Trafigura booked $700 million in impairment charges in its first half, attributed to management of its assets division.
It cited its divestment of metals subsidiary Nyrstar’s assets in Tennessee, US, and its fuel-supplier subsidiary Greenergy’s purchase of French firm Armorine.
“We’re overall happy with the roughly $10 billion of assets that we have as a company, but we continue to look to optimize,” Jansma said.
Trafigura recorded earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $7.9 billion in its first half, up from $3.9 billion in the same period of 2025.
Group equity value was $17.5 billion as of March 31, the firm said, from $16.2 billion at the end of its last financial year.
(By Robert Harvey; Editing by Louise Heavens)
