Big Oil Buybacks Are Tip of $1 Trillion Iceberg: Lionel Laurent

Chevron Corp.’s blockbuster $75 billion share buyback has drawn the ire of Joe Biden, whose call for more investment in pumping oil — alongside a new 1% tax on buybacks — doesn’t seem to have done much to steer cash into unloved fossil fuels and away from short-term investor sweeteners. Corporate America spent an estimated $1 trillion on buybacks last year.

European politicians will likely feel similarly irate and helpless as corporate payouts rebound in wartime. Big Oil’s expected $200 billion profit haul — and related buybacks announced by Shell Plc, BP Plc and TotalEnergies SE — only looks like the tip of the iceberg in ...