Royal Dutch Shell reports 4Q net profit of $1.96 billion

Shell oil 4Q net profit $1.96 billion

AMSTERDAM — Royal Dutch Shell PLC has reported a fourth quarter net profit of $1.96 billion, saying its earning suffered from poor refining margins.

The profit reported Thursday compares with a loss of $2.81 billion in the same period a year ago, when the company had to write down the value of its inventory after a sharp fall in the price of oil.

However, stripping out the cost of inventories, profit was $1.18 billion, down 75 percent from $4.79 billion.