Royal Dutch Shell’s net profit collapsed 71 per cent in the second quarter on the back of ultra-low oil prices, the British energy giant said on Thursday.

Net profit sank to $1.175 billion in the three months to June, compared with $3.986 billion in the same part of 2015, Shell announced in a results statement.

Profit on a current cost-of-supplies (CCS) basis — which strips out changes to the value of its oil and gas inventories — slid 72 per cent to $1.045 billion in the reporting period.

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