Total pledges higher dividend as confidence in oil recovery grows

Paris

TOTAL SA signalled growing confidence that the oil industry slump is coming to an end by pledging to raise its dividend and buy back shares in the coming years.

After riding out the biggest industry downturn in a generation by selling about US$10 billion of assets and slashing spending, Total chief executive officer Patrick Pouyanne is joining peers including Statoil ASA and ConocoPhillips in offering greater rewards to shareholders. While the industry's fourth-quarter earnings have been mixed, most companies are clearly putting the three-year price plunge behind them.