British gas producer BG Group reported a 46 per cent jump in second-quarter net profit excluding one-off items today yet still undershot analysts' forecasts.
BG said its underlying profit was £401 million sterling ($741 million), but, including a tax charge related to the first quarter, the result was £325 million sterling.
BG shares fell 2.25 per cent to 694-1/2 pence just after midday compared with a 0.1 per cent rise in the DJ Stoxx European oil and gas sector index.
The operating gain was powered by high oil and gas prices and a forecast-beating 25 per cent rise in production. Oil prices were around 35 per cent higher in the quarter compared with the same period of 2005, while UK gas prices were around 30 per cent stronger.
Including all one-off items net profit was £418 million, down 14 per cent from the same period of 2005, when profits were boosted by the sale of a stake in a Kazakh oil field.