TotalEnergies Profits Rise as Iraq Seeks IMF Aid

TotalEnergies reported a record $8.3 billion net profit for the third quarter, from July to September, as the war in the Middle East pushed energy prices higher. Iraq, whose oil exports almost entirely rely on transport through the Strait of Hormuz, faces pressure on public finances and has requested a new International Monetary Fund program. The same regional crisis lands differently on a company capturing higher prices and a state confronting disrupted exports and a forecast economic contraction.

War prices, shareholder returns

TotalEnergies’ third-quarter profit rose from $5.4 billion in the preceding three months. The company said the increase would be reflected in a higher shareholder dividend. It also reported strong bottom-line increases in each of the preceding two quarters, driven by soaring oil and gas prices and trading activities.

“In a high-price environment characterized by historic refining margin levels and a bull gas market, TotalEnergies is once again fully leveraging its integrated business model and its geographic diversification,” chief executive Patrick Pouyanne said.

The board confirmed a third interim dividend of 0.90 euros per share for 2026, up 5.9 percent from 2025. TotalEnergies will also buy back shares for cancellation worth $2.5 billion “for the fourth quarter as well as for the first quarter 2027.” Its board said strong operational performance across business segments had enabled the company “to capture higher market prices.”

The company will undertake a capital increase reserved for employees, who will receive a “20 percent discount on the share price.” The earnings statement lists the winners of higher market prices plainly: shareholders are due a larger dividend and share buybacks, while employees are offered discounted shares.

Iraq turns to the Fund

The U.S.-Israel war on Iran, launched in late February, plunged the region into conflict. Tehran’s retaliation virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a major energy supply route. Iraq depends heavily on energy exports, and almost all of those exports rely on transport through the strait.

The IMF is engaging with Iraqi authorities as it prepares a new bailout program for an economy battered by the war on Iran. Before the war, Iraq already faced acute fiscal constraints. The Fund forecast this month that the economy would contract by 16 percent this year.

“Our plan now is to engage with the authorities to understand better their priorities, how they want to address their vulnerabilities, and then to move ahead on how we can best support them with a program,” IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack said at a regular briefing in Washington. She cited severe financing constraints predating the war and a very narrow non-oil revenue base that put pressure on the fiscal balance.

Iraq’s last three most recent IMF programs ended in 2019. The country had around $428 million in interest payments due to the Fund by 2030, according to IMF data. IMF Chief Kristalina Georgieva said Iraq had approached the Fund for a new program. She praised the resilience of global economic growth amid wars in Iran and Ukraine, while warning that outcomes were highly uneven and more vulnerable economies were being battered.

Currency pressure and commercial access

Central Bank Governor Nizar Nasser Hussein said the gap between the dinar’s official and parallel-market exchange rates had narrowed to 9 percent from approximately 24 percent. He denied reports that new banknotes were being printed. In early October, the Central Bank of Iraq raised the dollar’s selling rate to the public to 1,520 dinars from approximately 1,320, devaluing the dinar by around 15 percent against the dollar amid pressure on oil revenues and foreign currency inflows.

The central bank said it was helping state-owned and private banks provide citizens concessional loans ranging from 5 million to 15 million Iraqi dinars. The Investment and Development Committee called for limiting the effects of exchange-rate changes on project costs, raw-material prices, contractual obligations, market stability and citizens’ purchasing power. It urged stronger coordination among the central bank, government agencies and banks, as well as simpler financing procedures.

Separately, Saudi Arabia’s rail services carried more than 40.9 million passengers in the third quarter of 2026, including 30.4 million on the Riyadh Metro. Specialists said the metro may affect commercial demand near stations, but warned that rent and occupancy changes can’t be attributed to transit alone. Average rents in Riyadh’s major shopping centers reached approximately SAR 2,650 per square meter annually, up 1.2 percent, while occupancy remained at 91 percent in the first half of 2026. Khaled Al-Mobid said 733 commercial units were offered within the public transport network. He and Khalid Aljasir cautioned that location, demand, business type and other market factors must be considered; a station nearby doesn’t guarantee a property’s success.