BP boosts dividend, buybacks as profit soars

LONDON: BP increased its dividend and ramped up share buybacks after second-quarter profit rose to $2.8 billion, joining rivals in boosting shareholder returns on the back of higher oil prices and a global recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

The surge in cash put wind in the sails of chief executive Bernard Looney's one-year-old plan to shift the company away from oil and gas to renewable and low-carbon energy in an effort to battle climate change.