Exxon slashes share buybacks to 14-year low

Washington

EXXON Mobil put investors on notice that it's scaling back measures to prop up the share price as shrinking production and tumbling crude prices squeeze cash flow needed to fund drilling and dividend payouts.

Exxon cut share repurchases for the current quarter to a 14-year low on Monday after oil and natural gas output declined more than expected. Its US refineries lost US$1 million and cash flow tumbled 36 per cent company-wide. Production from Exxon's wells dropped to the lowest fourth-quarter average since the Mobil merger in 1999.

The price of a barrel of crude tumbled more than US$37 during the final three months of 2014. If the decline persists for a year, it would shave US$10.6 billion from Exxon's annual cash flow, based on Barclays' estimate. Even after the slump, a…